The biggest novelty in the field of long-distance international and domestic transport in the 2025 timetable will be the introduction of four pairs of the Baltic Express trains from Prague to Gdynia and the gradual introduction of the ComfortJet units. However, there will be no major changes in routes, departure and arrival times or in the number of long-distance trains. Changes in the timetables of long-distance trains will mostly be within a few minutes.
The range of commercial trains as well as long-distance services offered by České dráhy within the framework of the order of the Ministry of Transport remains without significant changes in the 2025 timetable. Nevertheless, one big novelty will appear on the railways, according to Michal Krapinec, Chairman of the Board of Directors and Director General of České dráhy: “Already in 4 months, 4 pairs of trains called Baltic Express will start running. In international cooperation with PKP Intercity, we will offer direct connections of Prague and Pardubice with Kłodzko, Wrocław, Poznań, Bydgoszcz and Tri-City on the Baltic Sea coast. This offer will considerably simplify and speed up travelling between the Czech Republic and Poland and will contribute to tourist and trade exchange between our countries. Until now, all long-distance trains to Poland have been running via Bohumín, which represented a considerable detour for the western part of our country. For example, the journey from Prague to Gdansk will be shortened by about 3 hours.”
To the Baltic Sea now by the Baltic Express
The new services will depart from Prague approximately 10 minutes before 7, 11, 15 and 19 o'clock. In the Czech Republic, they will also stop in Kolín, Pardubice, Ústí nad Orlicí, Letohrad, Jablonné nad Orlicí and Lichkov. In Poland they will continue via Kłodzko, Wrocław, Poznań and Bydgoszcz to Gdańsk, Sopot and Gdynia. However, they will also stop in other tourist and economic centres of Poland.
“We believe that there will be interest in the new trains among Czech and Polish passengers. Many cities on the Baltic Express route have a rich history and cultural and historical connection with the Czech Republic. They are therefore attractive destinations for Czech tourists. Polish cities can then generate a significant number of tourists heading for the Czech Republic. The four largest cities on the route alone have over 2 million inhabitants. They are also important economic centres. The services are also of great importance within the framework of domestic transport. In our country, they provide a direct, fast and comfortable connection from the north-western part of the Pardubice Region to the capital,” reminds Jiří Ješeta, Member of the Board of Directors and Deputy Director General of ČD for Passenger Transport.
The trains will then depart from Wrocław at approximately 5, 9, 13 and 17 o'clock. The journey between Prague and Wrocław will take approximately 4 hours, to Poznań less than 6 hours and to Gdańsk approximately eight and three-quarter hours. From Pardubice, the journey time to these destinations will be one hour shorter. The train routes and journey times will allow, for example, one-day trips from the Czech Republic to Kłodzko or Wrocław.
The trainsets will be formed of modern, air-conditioned carriages of České dráhy and PKP Intercity. Passengers will be offered, for example, an on-board Wi-Fi network or the possibility of charging travel electronics. The trains will include carriages for wheelchair users and bicycle transport. Refreshments will be offered by the ČD Minibar service.
ComfortJet goes into operation
“During the 2025 timetable, we expect to take over additional ComfortJet units and to put them into operation on a gradual basis. Passengers will first encounter them on such domestic trains as IC 510 / 511 'Ostravan' (Bohumín – Prague – Bohumín) and IC 512 / 515 'Ostravan' (Bohumín – Františkovy Lázně – Bohumín). Subsequently, they will be put into operation on the international 'Berliner' lines and in the second half of the year or so we would like to start putting them into service also on connections to Austria and Hungary. Thanks to this development, we will also offer state-of-the-art trains to domestic passengers between Prague and Ústí nad Labem or between Prague and Brno,” says Jiří Ješeta.
There will be a larger number of changes in the 2025 timetable for long-distance transport only in the Prague railway junction. Due to construction work in Smíchov and the condition of the railway bridge in Výtoň, the Ex 6 line trains (Západní Express and Bavarian Express) will usually be routed through Krč and will not stop at the Praha-Smíchov railway station. For most lines to the east of Prague, the starting and terminus railway station will newly be Praha hlavní nádraží instead of the Praha-Vršovice railway station.
There will be also some minor changes on foreign sections of trains. For example, the EC Sobieski service from Vienna to Gdynia will newly start and end in Warsaw. For onward travelling to the north of Poland, a transfer to Polish domestic services will be necessary.
Author: Tiskové oddělení Českých drah
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