Train Drivers in the Vysočina Region Are Already Being Trained for RegioFox Units

České dráhy is doing its best to reduce delays arising in connection with the deployment of new RegioFox train sets, caused by lengthy approval procedures and trial operation on the part of the manufacturer, the Poland-based company “Pesa Bydgoszcz”. That is why the carrier has started the trial operation of the RegioFox units in the Vysočina (Highlands) Region in advance from Monday 15 January 2024 with a view of training a sufficient number of train drivers and maintenance staff beforehand. This will enable the new train sets to be deployed without delay as soon as they are taken over from the manufacturer, which should happen this spring.

“The manufacturer of the new trains known as RegioFox, is now about three quarters of a year behind in the field of approval of new trains for our company. In order to reduce this delay in putting the modern units into operation as much as possible, we have started the training of train drivers and maintenance staff in Havlíčkův Brod, from where the RegioFox trains will be dispatched to railway lines in the Vysočina (Highlands) and Pardubice Regions, within the framework of a trial operation. We believe that the manufacturer will manage to complete the trial operation and to obtain the type approval of the RegioFox train units by this spring, which will open up the space for the takeover of the already produced trains. Thanks to the current training of a sufficient number of drivers and technicians, we can then put the train sets into operation without further delay and thus accelerate the deployment of the new units into regular operation in the Vysočina and Pardubice Regions by at least one to two months,” says Jiří Ješeta, Member of the Board of Directors and Deputy Director General of ČD for Passenger Transport.

In the depot in Havlíčkův Brod, they will take care of 16 RegioFox diesel multiple units, nine of which are to run in the Vysočina Region, for example on the Havlíčkův Brod – Jihlava – Slavonice railway line, and seven of them are intended for the Pardubice Region for the Havlíčkův Brod – Chrudim – Pardubice railway line.

The new 847 class RegioFox units are manufactured by Pesa in Bydgoszcz, Poland. Currently, it arranges for their approval at the Rail Authority, which is necessary to obtain before the handover of the vehicles to the carrier. Once the vehicles are approved and taken over by České dráhy this year, they will be put into service not only in the Vysočina and Pardubice Regions, but also in South Bohemian, Central Bohemian, Hradec Králové and Pardubice Regions and in Prague. For the time being, the RegioFox units are still in the possession of the manufacturer and are still undergoing their trial operation. Due to the manufacturer’s roughly three-quarters of a year delay in approving the 847 class RegioFox units, Pesa Bydgoszcz is due to deliver almost 60 units this year.

The RegioFox diesel multiple units are wheelchair-accessible, air-conditioned trains equipped with additional services for comfortable travel to work, school or leisure activities, such as on-board Wi-Fi network, electrical sockets and USB connectors for charging travel electronics, compartments for large luggage, including prams and bicycles, or an audiovisual information system. The diesel units are equipped with Rolls-Royce engines with a possibility of using the latest generation of environment-friendly HVO fuels.