The delivery of five modern RegioPanter trains for the Moravian-Silesian Region is complete. The first electric two-car unit of the 650.2 class arrived at the Region at the beginning of the year, and another four units have arrived these days. They were put into service with the new 2024 Timetable, which entered into force in mid-December. České dráhy thus continues in its project of extensive renewal of the rolling stock in Northern Moravia. Deliveries of new trains are also planned for the next few years, when the Moravian-Silesian Region will become the first region in the Czech Republic where battery trains are to be operated.
These additional four RegioPanter two-car electric units will significantly increase the comfort of travelling especially on the S3 line between Bohumín, Ostrava and Hranice na Moravě. The new low-floor units will ensure complete coverage of this line. They will also start to appear on the S9 line between Ostrava-Svinov and Český Těšín.
These modern trains offer all the comfort for suburban and regional travelling. The units with a capacity of 147 passengers are wheelchair accessible and have enough space for passengers in wheelchairs, prams or bicycles. At the same time, they offer spacious air-conditioned interiors, comfortable seats, Wi-Fi connection or the possibility of charging small travel electronics.
Another fostering element in the process of modernisation of railway transport services in the Moravian-Silesian Region is the new generation of three-car RegioPanter train sets, which have been running on passenger trains between Opava and Ostrava-Svinov since this summer.
Production of the new trains is to continue next year as well, when the Škoda Group is to deliver four more RegioPanter electric units. In this case, the trains will be retrofitted with battery cells, as requested by the Moravian-Silesian Region. “Trains with hybrid drive systems will have their premiere on Czech tracks next year. České dráhy will be the first railway carrier in the Czech Republic to put battery-powered passenger trains into operation. At the same time, a tender is underway for another 15 battery-powered units, which we expect to deploy in two years, i.e., from December 2025. The capital expenditures aimed at a total of 26 new trains in the Moravian-Silesian Region are worth almost CZK 4 billion,” says Jiří Ješeta, Member of the Board of Directors and Deputy Director General of ČD for Passenger Transport.
Battery electric units can be deployed on the lines which combine electrified and non-electrified railway lines. Passengers will no longer have to change between electric and diesel trains, and new direct connection services will be created in the Region, e.g., from Ostrava to Veřovice, from Krnov to Český Těšín or from Ostrava to Nový Jičín.
Author: Tiskové oddělení Českých drah
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