The Czech railway company, České dráhy (ČD), has already equipped more than 420 locomotives with the European Train Control System (ETCS). Additionally, 750 locomotive drivers from the national transport company have been trained to operate under ETCS monitoring.
Starting from 1 January 2025, Czech Railways (ČD) plans to operate exclusively under the ETCS system on selected corridor routes. The company’s trains have already been running under ETCS supervision for several months on sections specified by the railway authority.
By the end of this year, a further 44 new vehicles with built-in ETCS units will be put into operation, and 54 existing vehicles will be retrofitted. This means that by 1 January 2025, around 520 České dráhy vehicles will be equipped with functional ETCS on-board units and ready for use.
On-board units are already installed and operational in locomotives of the 162 WTB, 362, and 362 WTB series. Installation work is ongoing on other vehicles, such as the class 750 locomotives, the RegioSpider and RegioShark diesel multiple units, the class 660/661 InterPanter electric multiple units, the first-generation RegioPanters, and the class 471 CityElefant electric suburban multiple units. All newly acquired vehicles, including RegioFox diesel multiple units, second-generation RegioPanters, and modern Vectron locomotives, are equipped with ETCS on-board units from the factory.
Since 1 August, a binding directive from the railway authority has been in force, requiring railway operators to use ETCS on selected track sections if the vehicle is equipped accordingly and the locomotive driver has been trained. “This will not change anything for České dráhy. We already implemented this measure in our internal guidelines at the beginning of 2023,” explains Jiří Ješeta, Member of the Board and Deputy General Director of České dráhy for Passenger Transport. “Our trains already cover several thousand kilometers in ETCS mode every day, for example on the corridors from the Slovakian and Polish borders via Bohumín to Břeclav, from Břeclav via Brno to Česká Třebová, from Přerov via Česká Třebová to Prague, or from Beroun via Plzeň to Cheb.”
The training of train drivers for the operation of ETCS-equipped vehicles is also continuing intensively. More than 750 train drivers have already completed their training at České dráhy, with others currently undergoing familiarisation.
The ETCS (European Train Control System) is a standardised European train control system. It aims to replace the various national systems, enable the interoperable operation of locomotives across Europe, increase train speeds and the capacity of railway lines, and improve the safety of railway operations. The system consists of two main components: a trackside part, which transmits information to the trains, and a mobile part, which is installed on the trains and forwards information to the locomotive driver or automatically stops the train if necessary.
