Jindřichův Hradec – Obrataň narrow-gauge railway

Jindřichův Hradec – Obrataň
Course book series (SŽDC) :	228
Route length:	45.996 km
Gauge :	760 mm ( Bosnian gauge )
Maximum slope :	26  ‰
Top speed:	50 km / h
Legend 0.000 Jindřichův Hradec JHMD formerly Neuhaus 470 m from Veselí nad Lužnicí Three- rail track 760/1435 mm 1,985 odb. Dolní Skrýchov to Jihlava and Nová Bystřice Nežárka Bridge 3.323 Horní Skrýchov formerly Obergrieschau 480 m 5,853 Dolní Radouň earlier Wenkerschlag 500 m 7,583 Lovětín formerly Lowietin 500 m 8,962 Lovětín obec 480 m 10.606 Nekrasín formerly Nekrasin 500 m 12.255 Nová Včelnice formerly Neuötting-Vtelnitz 512 m 15,850 Žďár u Kamenice nad Lipou formerly Schdiar 510 m 18,450 Rodinov formerly Radinov 510 m 20.265 Kamenice nad Lipou formerly Kamnitz an der Linde 550 m 23,567 Včelnička formerly Bienenthal 570 m 27.798 Benešov nad Lipou formerly Beneschau 30.526 Chválkov formerly Chwalkow 666 m 33,452 Dobešov formerly Dobeschau 610 m 35,565 Černovice u Tábora formerly Chernowitz 590 m 39.844 Křeč formerly Kretsch 660 m 43,074 Sudkův Důl formerly Sudekgruben 600 m 45.123 Obrataň zastávka 550 m 45.996 Obrataň formerly Wobratein 575 m (Transition to the Horní Cerekev – Tábor railway line )

The narrow-gauge railway Jindřichův Hradec – Obrataň is a narrow-gauge railway connection in the Czech Republic , which was originally built and operated as a state -guaranteed local railway Neuhaus – Wobratain. It runs in southern Bohemia from Jindřichův Hradec ( Neuhaus ) via Kamenice nad Lipou ( Kamnitz an der Linde ) to Obrataň ( Wobratain ).

According to a decree of the Czech government, the line has been classified as a regional railway ("regionální dráha") since December 20, 1995. Since 1998 it has been owned by the private railway company Jindřichohradecké místní dráhy (JHMD).

history

The district representative in Kamenitz an der Linde (Kamenice nad Lipou) received the concession to build the line on December 27, 1904. The license was issued for a period of 90 years. Part of the concession was also the obligation to start construction of the line immediately and to complete it within two years. The district agency founded the local railway company Neuhaus – Wobratain , which carried out the construction of the line. The state guarantee was granted by the Crown Land of Bohemia . This was unusual in that state guarantees and grants in the Bohemian countries were generally only granted for normal-gauge routes. The main reason for this decision, however, was the narrow-gauge railway Jindřichův Hradec – Nová Bystřice , which started in Jindřichův Hradec . This made it possible to operate both routes together in a cost-effective way.

The line was opened on December 24, 1906. The kk Staatsbahnen (kkStB) took over the management on behalf of the local railway company.

Heating house in Kamenitz adL (around 1906)

Operation started with steam locomotives. For this purpose, there were boiler houses in Jindřichův Hradec, Kamenice nad Lipou and Obrataň. Soon after the opening, goods transport with trolleys was set up.

With the establishment of the Czechoslovak State Railways (ČSD) in autumn 1918, management was also transferred to them. Initially, however, nothing changed in the legal position of the local railway company. The first winter timetable published by ČSD in 1918/1919 showed only one pair of trains on the entire route, another only ran between Jindřichův Hradec and Kamenice nad Lipou.

On January 1, 1925, the Neuhaus – Wobratain local railway was nationalized. With this, ČSD also became the owner of the infrastructure. In the period that followed, they tried to modernize the route. From the 1930s, railcars were used in times of low traffic.

During the Second World War, the line remained under Czech administration in contrast to the subsequent line to Neubistritz. The operators were now the Protectorate Railways Bohemia and Moravia (ČMD-BMB). The travel time of the fastest train over the entire route was 123 minutes in 1944, which corresponds to an average speed of 23 km / h.

After the end of the Second World War , the line came back to the ČSD. In the 1950s, ČSD continued the modernization efforts that had already begun before the Second World War. The aged steam locomotives were replaced by diesel locomotives, and new cars were acquired for passenger transport in the 1960s. Later the track system was completely renewed, so that the permissible line speed could be increased to 50 km / h. At the end of the 1980s, the timetable showed a total of eight pairs of trains on the entire route, with three further sections served. It was not until the early 1990s that the operation of the line was called into question for the first time, especially since some of the vehicles used had reached the limit of their service life.

JHMD passenger train in Lovětín

In 1998 the line was one of the first to be privatized in the Czech Republic. Since then the operator has been Jindřichohradecké místní dráhy as (JHMD). The JHMD succeeded in significantly shortening the scheduled travel times by streamlining the timetables, setting up demand stops and using the maximum route speed. The fastest train (6:10 p.m. from Jindřichův Hradec) only needed 78 minutes in the 2010 timetable, which corresponds to a cruising speed of a remarkable 35 km / h.

With a total of twelve pairs of trains, the route is now well served. Usually only one passenger car is attached to the locomotive. Freight traffic is still handled with roll-stands. In the summer months, the JHMD runs tourist traffic with museum trains on the weekends, for which a total of three steam locomotives are available.

Vehicle use

Traction vehicles

Steam locomotives

U 37.002 (formerly kkStB U 12) as a museum locomotive in Jindřichův Hradec

T 47.011 of the JHMD in Jindřichův Hradec

For the opening, the kkStB procured triple-coupled narrow-gauge locomotives, as they had previously been procured for the Murtalbahn , which they also operate (but privately owned as a stock corporation) . The kkStB designated these locomotives as the U series (after U nzmarkt on the Murtalbahn, the first location of this type). They had the company numbers U.33, U.34 and U.41.

After the First World War, traffic was handled in particular with Mallet locomotives of the U 47.0 series , which originally came from the Serbian State Railways. The U 48.001 served as a reserve from 1931 to 1939 .

One each of the U 37.0 and U 47.0 have been preserved in a museum. They are used in front of the museum trains in the summer months. The JHMD also uses a locomotive from Romania with the designation U 46.001 (replica MÁVAG type 70 ) in front of the museum trains .

Railcar

From 1929, the ČSD acquired two tower cars of the M 11.0 series , which were a narrow-gauge version of the ČSD M 120.4 series . These vehicles were mainly used in times of low traffic. From 1939 on, two four-axle railcars of the M 21.0 series were also purchased. The use of railcars lasted until shortly after the Second World War . The M 21.004 railcar has been preserved and is now in Čierny Balog on the Schwarzgranbahn ( Slovakia ).

The JHMD has recently started using class M 27.0 railcars again (formerly PKP class MBxd2 ).

Diesel locomotives

Since 1955, the traffic has been operated mainly with the diesel locomotives of the T 47.0 series . In the 1970s, more of these locomotives came to Jindřichův Hradec when the narrow-gauge railways Frýdlant – Heřmanice and Ružomberok – Korytnica kúpele were shut down.

A PKP class Lxd2 locomotive is now also in Jindřichův Hradec .

Passenger cars

Passenger carriage Balm / u in Jindřichův Hradec

The two-axle passenger cars initially procured were largely manufactured by the Ringhoffer wagon factory in Prague . Later, open four-axle vehicles, four-axle passenger cars and bar cars completed the portfolio.

In the 1960s, several originally Saxon load wagons came to Jindřichův Hradec, which had remained in Frýdlant after 1945 . These cars were used in passenger trains until the late 1970s.

The type Balm / ú passenger cars used today were manufactured by ČKD Tatra in Prague in the 1960s . The passenger coaches, which were ultra-modern at the time, have hard-padded benches, closed end stages, translation windows and their own oil heating.

In the 1980s, a museum train was put together from the last two-axle old wagons in the ČSD's inventory. This stylish train set is now regularly used as a museum train on weekends in summer.

Freight wagons

Trolley pit in Jindřichův Hradec

Initially the operation was carried out with two-axle wagons. Most of the freight wagons came from Grazer Maschinen- und Waggonbau-Aktiengesellschaft . Later, the roller-frame traffic , which is still practiced today, was introduced. The latest roll stands come from the Poprad wagon factory from the 1980s.

See also

• Narrow-gauge railway Jindřichův Hradec – Nová Bystřice

literature

• Helmuth Lampeitl: Narrow Gauge Romanticism in Eastern Europe . EK-Verlag, Freiburg 2003, ISBN 3-88255-285-9
• Zdeněk Hudec u. a .: Atlas drah České republiky 2006-2007 , 2nd edition; Publishing house Pavel Malkus, Praha, 2006, ISBN 80-87047-00-1

Web links

Commons : Railway line 228 (Czech Republic)  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• KBS228 Jindřichův Hradec – Obrataň on www.zelpage.cz
• Official website of JHMD as (Czech / English)

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
2. ↑ Decree of the Czech government of December 20, 1995
3. ^ Imperial law for the kingdoms and states represented in the Imperial Council of December 31, 1904
4. ↑ 1918 timetable of the ČSD
5. ↑ Timetable 1944
6. ↑ 2010 timetable (PDF file; 239 kB)
7. ↑ Directory of the locomotives, tenders, water cars and railcars of the kk Austrian state railways and the state operated private railways as of June 30, 1917. Verlag der kk Österreichische Staatsbahnen, Vienna 1918.