Warszawska Kolej Dojazdowa

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Warszawska Kolej Dojazdowa
LUECKE
INTCPICl CPICra
Warszawa Śródmieście WKD
LUECKE tHST
Warszawa Ochota WKD
INTCPICl CPICr
Warszawa Zachodnia WKD
LUECKE HST
Warszawa Reduta Ordona
HST
Warszawa Al. Jerozolimskie
HST
Warszawa Raków
HST
Warszawa Salomea
HST
Opacz
HST
Michałowice
HST
Reguły
HST
Malichy
HST
Tworki
BHF
Pruszków WKD
eABZlg
(junction with PKP)
HST
Komorów
HST
Nowa Wieś Warszawska
HST
Kanie Helenowskie
HST
Otrębusy
HST
Podkowa Leśna Wschodnia
HST
Podkowa Leśna Główna
STRrg ABZrf
HST HST
Podkowa Leśna Zachodnia
HST STR
Polesie
STR HST
Kazimierówka
HSTe STR
Milanówek Grudów
HST
Brzózki
HST
Grodzisk Mazowiecki Okrężna
HST
Grodzisk Mazowiecki Piaskowa
HST
Grodzisk Mazowiecki Jordanowice
HSTe
Grodzisk Mazowiecki Radońska
Schema of the WKD line, the grey area marks Warsaw.
Schema of the WKD line, the grey area marks Warsaw.
Type EN95 train at Warszawa Śródmieście WKD station
Type EN95 train at Warszawa Śródmieście WKD station
Podkowa Leśna Główna station
Podkowa Leśna Główna station
Type EN94 train at Podkowa Leśna Zachodnia station
Type EN94 train at Podkowa Leśna Zachodnia station
Type EN95 train at Podkowa Leśna Główna station
Type EN95 train at Podkowa Leśna Główna station
Vintage type EN80 train
Vintage type EN80 train

Warszawska Kolej Dojazdowa (Warsaw Suburban Railway, WKD) is a suburban light rail line in Poland's capital city of Warsaw. The line, together with its two branches, links Warsaw with the municipalities of Michałowice, Pruszków, Brwinów, Podkowa Leśna, Milanówek and Grodzisk Mazowiecki to the south-west of Warsaw.

Contents

[edit] History

The line was opened on 11 January 1927 as Elektryczna Kolej Dojazdowa (Electrical Suburban Railway), and received its current name in 1951. It was the first electric railway in Poland and the first one with automatic colour light signalling, supplied by the Swedish firm Signalbolaget. The Milanówek branch opened in 1936.

A single-track branch line between Warszawa Szczęśliwice and Warszawa Włochy EKD operated from 1932 till 1971.

A part of Polskie Koleje Państwowe (Polish State Railways, PKP) from 1947, the line was acquired in late 2004 by a consortium made up of the city of Warsaw, the Masovian regional government and the six municipalities served by the line.[1]

[edit] Route

Starting from the Warszawa Śródmieście WKD terminus adjacent to the mainline Warszawa Centralna station, the line initially runs to the west alongside Warsaw's main east-west railway line before turning to the south-west on its own right of way. The length of the Warszawa Śródmieście WKD to Grodzisk Mazowiecki Radońska line is 33 km, and of the Milanówek branch 3 km. The stations are:[2]

  • Warszawa Śródmieście WKD
  • Warszawa Ochota
  • Warszawa Zachodnia
  • Warszawa Reduta Ordona
  • Warszawa Aleje Jerozolimskie
  • Warszawa Raków
  • Warszawa Salomea
  • Opacz
  • Michałowice
  • Reguły
  • Malichy
  • Tworki
  • Pruszków WKD
  • Komorów
  • Nowa Wieś Warszawska
  • Kanie Helenowskie
  • Otrębusy
  • Podkowa Leśna Wschodnia
  • Podkowa Leśnia Główna
  • Podkowa Leśna Zachodnia

Here the line splits into two branches. The stations on the Milanówek branch (line 48) are:

  • Polesie
  • Milanówek Grudów

The stations on the Grodzisk Mazowiecki branch (line 47) are:

  • Kazimierówka
  • Brzózki
  • Grodzisk Mazowiecki Okrężna
  • Grodzisk Mazowiecki Piaskowa
  • Grodzisk Mazowiecki Jordanowice
  • Grodzisk Mazowiecki Radońska

There is a single-track non-electrified link between the Komorów station and the PKP rail network (Pruszków station), carrying no scheduled traffic.

[edit] Operation

The WKD is standard gauge and electrified at 600 Volts DC on the overhead system. Train service is provided by two classes of train sets:

  • Type EN94 six-axle articulated electric units, built from 1969 and normally operated in pairs. The line owns 40 of these units.
  • Type EN95 ten-axle low-floor articulated electric units, built from 2004 and normally operated singly. The lines owns, or has on order, 13 of these units.

The line also possesses a vintage type EN80 four-axle electric unit, built by English Electric at Preston in 1927, and a small diesel shunter, obtained second hand from PKP.[3][4]

On the main line, trains operate every 15 minutes at peak periods and every 30 minutes at other times, with a service gap between midnight and 05:00. For most of the day, one train an hour runs through to Milanówek Grudów, with most of the other trains running through to Grodzisk Mazowiecki Radońska. All trains stop at all stations on their route, and a journey from Warszawa Śródmieście to Grodzisk Mazowiecki Radońska takes just under one hour.[5]

The company's headquarters and the main technical depot are in Grodzisk Mazowiecki.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Railway dispute continues. European Industrial Relations Observatory. Retrieved on September 18, 2006.
  2. ^ WKD - Route Map. Warszawska Kolej Dojazdowa. Retrieved on September 18, 2006.
  3. ^ Rail Operators in Poland. railfaneurope.net. Retrieved on September 19, 2006.
  4. ^ WKD shunters and trainsets. railfaneurope.net. Retrieved on September 19, 2006.
  5. ^ Rozkład jazdy kolejki WKD Warszawa - Grodzisk Mazowiecki. Warszawska Kolej Dojazdowa. Retrieved on September 19, 2006.

[edit] External links

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