Last year, ČD introduced a total of 144 brand new electric, diesel and non-traction units and electric locomotives at a cost of almost CZK 19 billion (EUR 760 million), says Michal Krapinec, Chairman of the Board of Directors:
"In 2024, we put a total of eight two-car electric RegioPanters, 46 three-car RegioPanters and 56 RegioFox units on the rails in ČD colours, and we were the first domestic railway company to test battery trains. In long-distance transport, we took over 8 state-of-the-art ComfortJet long-distance trains and 22 Siemens Vectron locomotives. This is a total of 22,000 seats in modern, barrier-free trains with air conditioning, power sockets and Wi-Fi, and all the standards that belong to rail travel in the 21st century," he says, adding that the rapid renewal of trains and improvement of services on board will continue this year, which, together with the positive economic result, is also appreciated by the Minister of Transport, Martin Kupka:
"For hundreds of thousands of people, this has meant a more comfortable journey to work, school and so on. The good news is that even at this rate of investment, the management of ČD manages to keep the company in the black," Martin Kupka says.
In addition to the use of ComforJet on the Prague-Brno route and on to Austria, Slovakia and Hungary, the internet on board trains will also be improved thanks to the installation of mobile signal repeaters and laser window treatment. In addition, ČD will begin testing the use of Starlink high-speed internet from Space X in the spring.
"We have started installing 5G mobile signal repeaters in Pendolino, Railjet and InterPanter units. I believe that we will also shortly be able to find a contractor to laser the windows to facilitate the passage of the mobile signal to more than 200 rail vehicles. And we are certainly not stopping there," emphasises ČD CEO Michal Krapinec: "In the spring we will start testing the Starlink satellite internet from Space X in one of our InterPanter units. In the second half of January, a prototype Starlink antenna for use in train sets should arrive in the Czech Republic from the United States. ČD will be one of the first users worldwide to test this technology," he adds.
In total, ČD will dispatch approximately 2.4 million connections over the course of the annual timetable, covering approximately 119 million kilometres. The average daily number of trains is 6,605. Thanks to the train upgrades, 439 barrier-free connections, 798 connections with on-board Wi-Fi network or 1,430 trains with electric sockets have been added year-on-year.
