Better carriages and a wider range of services. České dráhy continues to improve the quality of travelling for its customers and will deploy more comfortable carriages on trains of such lines as R17, R11 and also Ex7. On fast trains from Prague to České Budějovice, a carriage equipped with, for example, a children's cinema and carriages with more places for storing bicycles are being deployed already now. From the new timetable onwards, there will be a significant increase in the quality of travelling on the R11 fast train line.
“The improvement of quality of the rolling stock is an important precondition for a wider use of railway transport, which is one of our priorities. In addition to the modernised carriages, which are bringing higher comfort of travelling on the lines to South Bohemia, passengers will certainly appreciate also the increase in the number of carriages on traffic-exposed days,” states Martin Kupka, Minister of Transport.
“Our options for renewal are not unlimited, but still, in agreement with the client ordering transport services, which is in this case the Ministry of Transport, we have proceeded to improving the rolling stock offer, and passengers will thus start to encounter more modern carriages on selected fast trains than before. Passengers could already notice the first changes. Since mid-August, we have started to newly put the Bmz229 class carriage on trains of the R17 line from Prague to České Budějovice and České Velenice in a regular configuration of the trains. This carriage is intended mainly for passengers with children, who can use a special children's section with a cinema where fairy tales for the little ones are projected. In addition, instead of one originally used carriage with bicycle storage space and one compartment carriage without bicycle storage space, we are now including two Bdpee231 class carriages, which together provide cyclists with a total of 10 seats for comfortable bicycle storage. As the south of Bohemia is a cyclist's paradise, I am sure that this change will be highly appreciated on the part of passengers,” says Jiří Ješeta, Member of the Board of Directors and Deputy Director General of ČD for Passenger Transport, adding: “From the new timetable in the middle of December, further improvements will follow, namely for fast trains on both legs of the R11 line, i.e. Plzeň – Strakonice – České Budějovice, as well as České Budějovice – Jihlava – Brno.”
“A large number of inhabitants of the South Bohemian Region commute to work in Tábor, Prague, Plzeň and even Brno. You can travel anywhere for a good job today, but the journey must be pleasant, comfortable and fast. The demand for more modern trains to match current trends in transport has been and is long-standing. Passengers want to use their time on the board of the train to prepare for the working day, and they need high-quality wi-fi communication and other services to do so. Together with České dráhy, we are working to improve the comfort of travelling in our region. New RegioPanter and RegioFox train sets are already running on South Bohemian railway lines, which is the result of our close cooperation with České dráhy. I am glad that the Ministry of Transport as well as České dráhy perceive the need for high-quality travelling also outside our region as equally important,” adds Martin Kuba, Chairman of the Council of the Regional Authority of the South Bohemian Region.
Since 15 August, one Bmz229 class compartment carriage has been newly added to the regular configuration of the R17 Vltava / Lužnice / Silva Nortica Prague – Veselí nad Lužnicí – České Budějovice / České Velenice fast trains. In addition to a children's cinema, the train is equipped with air conditioning, Wi-Fi internet connection and sockets for charging travel electronics. More space for bicycles is provided by a pair of the Bdpee231 class carriages, which provide space for the safe storage of up to 10 bicycles. In addition, from the middle of December this year, the modernised Bmz229 or Bmz226 class compartment carriages will be used as booster carriages on these train services, which will improve the quality of travelling, especially on busy days and during the summer.
Since the middle of August, there has also been a change in the configuration of the Ex7 Jižní expres line from Prague via České Budějovice to Linz or Český Krumlov. In the basic five-carriage trainset, the Bmz226 compartment car is now used instead of the Bdmpee233 large-capacity car, which offers comfortable seating on long journeys and plenty of space in the six-seat compartment; while Wi-Fi internet and air conditioning being a matter-of-course. These carriages are also capable of speeds of up to 200 km/h. The change will also apply to the booster cars from December, where also only the Bmz226 compartment cars will be used in a regular service.
R11 fast trains from December with more modern 1st class carriages
From December, České dráhy is planning major changes to its fast trains on the R11 Rožmberk / Bezdrev line, which connect the west and south of the Czech Republic with Vysočina (the Highlands Region) and the South Moravian Region. Passengers can look forward to greater comfort in the first class, which will be provided by large-capacity, combine ABpee347 class carriages. Passengers may know these carriages, for example, from the fast trains between Prague and Hradec Králové.
The Deputy Director General Jiří Ješeta comments this development as follows: “Until now, we have been operating a combined carriage with both the first-class and second-class compartments on the R11 line, which was not air-conditioned. This is not the standard we want to offer our passengers in 2024. Therefore, we will replace it with a modern carriage which already offers air conditioning to passengers. In addition, we will also remove another older type of carriage with manually pull-down windows from the fast trains on this line and we will newly replace it with a new Bpee237 large-capacity carriage with air conditioning, sockets and wi-fi communication.” Two more modernised carriages will therefore be included in the trainset. On the Rožmberk and Bezdrev fast trains, the B249 class carriages with eight-seater compartments will also cease to be used in regular operation. Instead of them, and also in case of booster carriages during peak hours, more comfortable B209 class carriages with six seats in the compartment will be running there.
Within the framework of the lines of the so-called "South Package", i.e. trains of the R11, R17 and Ex7 lines, starting from the December timetable change, České dráhy will deploy a total of 57 modern carriages with high-quality services for passengers into the daily train circulation.
Overview of changes in train configurations on selected lines
R17 line trains (Prague – Veselí nad Lužnicí – České Budějovice / České Velenice (– Vienna))
- New configuration since 15 August 2024: Aee140, Bbdgmee236, Bmz229, 2× Bdpee231, booster carriages: B209
- Planned configuration from the 2025 timetable: Aee140, Bbdgmee236, Bmz229, 2× Bdpee231; booster carriages: Bmz226 and Bmz229
Ex7 line trains (Prague – Tábor – České Budějovice (– Český Krumlov) – Linz)
- New configuration since 15 August 2024: ARmpee829, Bbdgmee236, 3× Bmz226, booster carriages: Bdmpee233 and Bmz229
- Planned configuration from the 2025 timetable: ARmpee829, Bbdgmee236, 3× Bmz226, booster carriages: Bmz226
R11AB line trains (Plzeň – Strakonice – České Budějovice; České Budějovice – Jihlava – Brno)
- Planned configuration from the 2025 timetable: ABpee347, Bbdgmee236, Bpee237, B209; booster carriages: B209
On working days, an average of 70 long-distance transport train services pass through the territory of the South Bohemian Region.
Author: Tiskové oddělení Českých drah
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