Ostrov nad Ohří – Jáchymov railway line

Ostrov nad Ohří – Jáchymov
Course book range :	14a (1957)
Route length:	8.05 km
Gauge :	1435 mm ( standard gauge )
Maximum slope :	52.6  ‰
Legend Connecting track of the Chomutov – Cheb railway line 0.00 Ostrov nad Ohří 386.5 m 2.00 Ostrov nad Ohří zastávka 3.62 vlečka Škoda Ostrov 3.80 Dolní Žďár 6.10 Horní Žďár 6.80 Jáchymovský tunel (18 m) 8.05 Jáchymov 605 m Vertex 611 m vlečka tabáková továrna 610 m

The Ostrov nad Ohří – Jáchymov railway was a regional railway connection in the Czech Republic , which was originally built and operated as a nationally guaranteed local railway Schlackenwerth – Joachimsthal ( Místní dráha Ostrov-Jáchymov in Czech ). It was one of the first local railways in Bohemia to be built in accordance with the provisions of the Provincial Law on Support for Low-Level Railways , passed in 1892 . The route ran in the Bohemian Ore Mountains from Ostrov nad Ohří ( Schlackenwerth ) to Jáchymov ( St. Joachimsthal ). With a maximum gradient of over 50 per mille, the route used to be the steepest adhesion railway in Bohemia .

history

Sankt Joachimsthal was once one of the most important cities in Bohemia thanks to a profitable ore mining . As early as 1883, the royal mining town obtained a provisional concession to build a local railway with Schlackenwerth to connect it to the main connection between Prague and Eger on the Buschtěhrad railway . For various reasons, the project was initially not carried out.

The municipality of Joachimsthal received the concession " to build and operate a standard-gauge local train from the Schlackenwerth station of the exclusively privileged Buschtěhrad Railway to Joachimsthal with a siding to the local tobacco factory " on September 5, 1895. Part of the concession was the obligation to build to start the route immediately and finish it within a year and a half. The duration of the concession was set at 90 years.

On September 25, 1896, construction of the tunnel on Galgenberg began. Due to the proximity of some of the houses there was no blasting, instead the stone was removed by hand. Although work was carried out 24 hours a day, the work progressed slowly. The tunnel was completed on October 14, 1896. At the end of November 1896, the technical inspection took place. The maximum incline of 52.6 per mille, 5.6 per mille more than originally planned in the project, was objected to.

The procession to mark the opening of the route in Joachimsthal station on December 21, 1896

On December 21, 1896, the route was opened with a pageant. Regular rail traffic began on December 23, 1896. The operation was carried out by the kk Staatsbahnen (kkStB) for the account of the owners.

In 1902 the city of Joachimsthal founded the local railway company Schlackenwerth – Joachimsthal . Their share capital totaled 433,200 kroner in 1,083 ordinary shares of 400 kroner each. In addition to the city of Joachimsthal, the majority owner was the Buschtěhrad Railway Company . The seat of the company was in Prague.

The beginning of the spa business in Joachimsthal in 1901 was significant for tourism. The construction of the large spa hotel "Radiumpalast" opposite the train station resulted in a significant increase in the number of travelers, which is mainly due to the arrival and departure of spa guests was. In 1912, the local railway's timetable showed six mixed pairs of 2nd and 3rd class trains. They needed 40-41 minutes for the eight-kilometer route uphill.

In the period before the First World War, projects to extend the route were discussed several times. The project of the so-called Keilbergbahn to Weipert, which would have crossed under the Keilberg massif in a long tunnel, was well advanced . A route to Bärringen to connect to the Karlsbad – Johanngeorgenstadt route was also examined .

After the collapse of Austria-Hungary in October 1918, management was transferred to the newly founded Czechoslovak State Railways (ČSD). With the nationalization of the local railway company from January 1, 1925, the infrastructure also belonged to the ČSD network.

From 1927, railcars were used for the first time on the route in times of low traffic. In 1928 a total of 300,000 travelers were carried.

As a result of the global economic crisis , there was a drastic decline in transport services in the early 1930s. From the summer timetable of 1930 only two mixed pairs of trains ran, from autumn 1932 only one. On December 15, 1934, travel was finally completely stopped. As a replacement, the ČSD set up a bus line that reached its destination faster at higher fares. As a result, there were considerations to shut down the largely traffic-free route completely. Thought was also given to using powerful motor trains to shorten the excessively long journey times. A project from 1937 to electrify the line failed for financial reasons.

After the Sudetenland became part of Germany on October 1, 1938, the line came to the Deutsche Reichsbahn , Reichsbahndirektion Dresden . The DR resumed travel with seven pairs of trains on November 16, 1941 due to the war-related fuel shortage. In the realm course book the connection was now a timetable route 166g Schlackenwerth-Radiumbad Jachymov included.

On May 25, 1945 the line came back to the ČSD. As before the Second World War, travel was initially carried out by buses again.

The intensified uranium mining in Joachimsthal as a result of the Soviet nuclear weapons program then again led to increasing transport performance in travel and freight traffic. The ores destined for the Soviet Union were then loaded into the closed tobacco factory. On October 7, 1946, the ČSD resumed passenger transport with twelve pairs of trains. Between 1948 and 1950 there was also a direct through car connection to and from Prague.

The enormous traffic load from ore traffic lasted only a few years due to the rapid exhaustion of the deposit. The Czechoslovak government then decided on June 8, 1955 to close the line. On August 3, 1957, the last scheduled trains ran and the line was shut down. The steep section between Dolní Žďár and Jáchymov was dismantled a little later. The line between Ostrov and Dolní Žďár initially remained in operation as a connecting line for the trolleybus manufacturer Škoda Ostrov , which was located on the site of the former uranium washing plant.

Operation of the connecting railway ended on June 30, 2004 with the closure of the plant.

In 2007, the Ostrov city administration had a project to convert the unused railway embankment between Horní Žďár and Jáchymov into a cycle path. Construction work began in April 2012, and rest areas and information boards were also set up. In September 2013 the approx. 2.6 kilometer long railway cycle path was opened.

Route description

historical map section with the route

The local line had its own train station in Ostrov opposite the main line station. A track connection made it possible to exchange vehicles there. The route then ran largely parallel to road I / 25 to Jáchymov. Shortly before the end point, a tunnel only 18 meters long was crossed, which has been preserved to this day. The Jáchymov train station was located in the lower part of the village near today's spa district. As an extension of the route, the connecting railway led to the kk tobacco factory.

Former station names

1913	1921	1944	1946	1956
Slag value	Ostrov / Schlackenwerth	Slag value	Ostrov	Ostrov nad Ohří
Slag value H	Ostrov z / Schlackenwerth H	Schlackenwerth Hp	Ostrov zastávka	Ostrov nad Ohří zastávka
Low fire	Dolní fire / low fire	Low fire	Dolní fire	Dolní Žďár
Upper fire	Horní fire / over fire	Upper fire	Horní fire	Horní Žďár
Joachimsthal	Jáchymov / St. Joachimsthal	Radium bath St Joachimsthal	Jáchymov	Jáchymov

Vehicle use

On the Schlackenwerth-Joachimsthal route, extremely powerful local railroad locomotives were always used because of the steep incline. The use of kkStB series 99 (ČSD 320.0) locomotives from the Karlsbad depot is documented.

In 1927 a rail bus ( ČSD M 120.101 ), which was built on the basis of a street bus from Praga, ran on a trial basis. From 1929 the Tatra tower cars of the ČSD series M 120.3 were used as planned to Joachimsthal. In the 1950s, travel was carried out with railcars of the ČSD class M 131.1 .

literature

• Ludek Čada, M. Kunt, R. Sedláček, J. Strnad: Místní dráha Ostrov - Jáchymov ; Vydavatelství dopravní literatury
• Miroslav Jelen: Zrušené železniční tratě v Čechách, na Moravě a ve Slezsku. ; Dokořán, Praha 2009, ISBN 978-80-7363-129-1 , pp. 43–46.

Web links

• Description in Týdeník Českých drah - ŽELEZNIČÁŘ ( Czech )
• Description ( Czech )
• Joachimsthal station Old photos and postcards on zanikleobce.cz

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Zdeněk Hudec u. a .: Atlas drah České republiky 2006–2007 , 2nd edition; Publishing house Pavel Malkus, Praha, 2006, ISBN 80-87047-00-1 ; P. 51.
2. ^ Imperial law for the kingdoms and countries represented in the Imperial Council - sent on October 20, 1895
3. ↑ Historical securities at www.geerkens.at
4. ↑ 1912 timetable of the kkStB - valid from May 1, 1912
5. ↑ [1] Legal text on www.parliament.cz
6. ^ Deutsches Kursbuch - Annual timetable 1944/45, valid from July 3, 1944 until further notice
7. ↑ cykloportal.ostrov.cz : Ostrov - Jáchymov cycle route , accessed on November 24, 2014.
8. ↑ Artaria railway map of Austria-Hungary and the Balkans , with Station Directory; Artaria & Co., Vienna 1913
9. ^ Deutsches Kursbuch - Annual timetable 1944/45, valid from July 3, 1944 until further notice