Prague connecting railway
| (odb. Hrabovka–) Praha hl. n. – Praha-Smíchov | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Course book series (SŽDC) : | 171 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Route length: | ~ 5.4 km | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Gauge : | 1435 mm ( standard gauge ) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Power system : | 3 kV = | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Dual track : | Praha hl. n. – Praha-Smíchov | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Prague connecting railway (Czech: Pražská spojovací dráha ) is an inner-city connecting railway in the Czech capital Prague , which was originally built and operated by the Kaiser-Franz-Josephs-Bahn (KFJB). It should connect the three important Prague train stations with each other. It began at Praha Masarykovo nádraží station and led via Praha hlavní nádraží (Prague Main Railway Station) to Praha-Smíchov station . Only the route from Praha hl. n. to Praha-Smíchov, the section from Praha Masarykovo nádraží to the main train station was abandoned in 2005 in favor of a new line (" New Connection ").
history
The connection of the planned Vienna - Gmünd - Prague line to the routes of the Bohemian Western Railway and the Northern State Railway was already provided for in the concession document issued on November 11, 1866 for the KFJB . The entire Vienna – Gmünd – Prague route was finally put into operation in sections by December 14, 1871. The end point of this line was the Franz-Josephs-Bahnhof - today's central station - east of Prague's old town.
The station of the Northern State Railway (Staatsbahnhof) was only a few hundred meters north of the Franz-Josephs-Bahnhof, but on a significantly lower level. A direct track connection was therefore not possible. Therefore, the new connecting track was tied in in the front of the station; Direct train journeys from Prague Franz-Josephs-Bahnhof in the direction of Bodenbach - Dresden were only possible with two changes of direction.
The western railway station, on the other hand, was on the other bank of the Vltava in what is now the Smíchov district . The route of the connecting line was unproblematic there. The tunnel under the Prague district of Vinohrady was given a second track, and a single-track bridge had to be built over the Vltava.
The entire connecting line was opened on August 15, 1872. Tourist traffic initially only took place between the Franz-Josephs-Bahnhof and the Westbahnhof. On the other hand, travelers had to walk between the Franz-Josephs-Bahnhof and the Staatsbahnhof.
On May 1, 1884, the KFJB passed into state ownership. The Prague connecting railway now belonged to the network of the kk state railways (kkStB). From October 1, 1888, the section between the State Railway Station and the Franz-Josephs-Bahnhof was also used by passenger trains.
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After the First World War, the line came to the newly founded Czechoslovak State Railways (ČSD). ČSD began electrifying the Prague railway junction with 1500 volts direct current in the 1920s . Electric train operation on the Prague connecting line began on May 15, 1928.
On May 15, 1962, the overhead contact line voltage was increased to the 3000 volts that are now common in Czechoslovakia .
On January 1, 1993, the line was transferred to the newly founded České dráhy (ČD) in the course of the dissolution of Czechoslovakia . In connection with the planned construction of the new connection between the main train station and Praha-Libeň, train traffic between the Hrabovka branch and the main train station was suspended on December 11, 2005. On December 12, 2005, the track was shut down and demolished a little later.
The connection between Praha hl. n. and Praha-Smíchov is now used by, among others, Esko Praha and long-distance traffic from Prague towards Plzeň and Cheb.
The missing, listed bridge over the Vltava is to be replaced by a new building. After a modern new building was rejected by the monument protection authority, the new bridge should look like the old bridge. To increase capacity, the new bridge is to be built with three tracks, while a new stop is to be built on the eastern bridge ramp.
Vehicles for electrification with 1500 volts
The following locomotives were procured for the electrification of the connecting line with direct current 1500 volts, which was actually intended as the beginning of a larger electrical network:
- E 225.001 (ex Wiener Stadtbahn)
- E 423.001-002
- E 424.001-002
- E 436.001-004
- E 465.001–002
- E 466.101-105
- E 467.001–005 (001–003 supplied as E 466.001–003)
- E 666.001–003 (1951 ex FS)
All these locomotives became redundant in 1962 with the conversion to 3000 volts, a few were still transferred to the local railways Tábor – Bechyně and Rybník – Lipno nad Vltavou (Hohenfurt Local Railway). Various locomotives have been preserved as museum pieces; the operational ones can be used on the last Tábor – Bechyně line that is still electrified with 1500 volts.
literature
- Kateřina Bečková: Zmizelá Praha - Nádraží a železniční tratě , Schola ludus - Pragensia, Praha 2009, ISBN 80-902505-7-2
- Zdeněk Hudec and others: Atlas drah České republiky 2006-2007 . 2nd Edition; Pavel Malkus Publishing House, Prague 2006, ISBN 80-87047-00-1
