1271i

INTERNATIONAL SUPPLEMENT TO BLN 1271 17 DECEMBER 2016

BRANCH LINE NEWS
INTERNATIONAL

This newsletter covers the World outside the British Isles from information
supplied by members.

Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the Compilers or of the Society.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS TEAM:-
International Editor (to whom all email and postal contributions should be sent):
Paul Griffin, 7 School Bell Mews, Church Lane, Stoneleigh, COVENTRY, CV8 3ZZ
Email: [email protected]
Deputy International Editor: Derek Woodward, 68 Church Street, Matlock, DERBY, DE4 3BY

___________________________________________________

The infamous ‘Death Railway’ built by the Japanese occupying forces in the Second World War had its Western end at
Thanbyuzayat in southern Myanmar. Some rails still exist and are seen on the left of the picture, where they lead past the
photographer through a gate to a plinthed steam locomotive in the grounds of the Death Railway Museum. The tracks visible in
the mid left of the picture are part of the Mawlamyine (then called Moulmein) to Ye railway. This was present in WW2, but the
extension from Ye to Dawei has been built subsequently.

Guess the Location Answer from BLNI 1270
The answer is Enschede in the Nederlands.
It is widely quoted that there is a gap between the rails but as you can see there is not. The track has
been kept for strategic reasons as well as for maintenance reasons.

The two stations beyond Enschede going towards Gronau are Enschede De Eschmarke and Glanerbrug
with Enschede De Eschmarke having the lowest usage of any station in the Nederlands.

EUROPE

[503] France – No trains on Chemin de Fer Touristique de la Brévenne in 2016
The Chemin de Fer Touristique de la Brévenne (CFTB) have run tourist trains between Sain-Bel and Ste-
Foy-l'Argentière (west of Lyon), but not since September 2012. Since then the need for major repairs
to the infrastructure as well as bureaucratic problems have prevented the tourist operation resuming,
and 2016 saw no trains operate.

[504] France – The Velo-Rail de Médréac in Brittany
This velo-rail operation is on 10km of the 38.4km La Brohinière to Dinan line, closed to passenger
services in 1947, and the final section to freight in 1985. The S&W Eisenbahn Frankreich – Nord shows
the Velo-Rail de Médréac as centred on the town of Médréac but with no indication as to where
visitors can actually pedal.
Two trips are on offer. A 6km round trip east toward Dinan and 14km round trip west and south
towards La Brohinière. Further interest is added by a railway museum in the old station at Médréac.
The station is open daily from 1 July to 31 August from 10:00-17:00 and, outside this period, at
weekends and holidays from April to 30 October.

[505] Germany – Halle S7 service split and diverted
The rebuilding of Halle station continues and from the beginning of December and all the next
timetable period, S7 services from Halle to Halle Nietleben will start/end at a temporary station on
goods lines (probably line 6350) 15 minutes walk from Halle Hauptbahnhof. S7 services from Halle
Trotha in the north continue to use the Hauptbahnhof, but the east side rather than the west side as
the west side is closed for reconstruction.

[506] Germany – New Aurachtalbrücke opens
Between Nürnberg and Würzburg (more specifically between Hagenbüchach and Emskirchen) the
bridge over the Aurach river dating back to just after WW2, has been replaced by a new bridge 90
metres north. The new bridge is 527.5 metres long and 40 metres high. The new position means that
1.75 kilometres of line has been realigned, the connections being made between 14 and 25 November.

[507] Italy – The Roma Laziali tramway and Metro line 3
BLNI 1240.323 reported that the Roma Laziali narrow gauge railway (or tramway, according to taste)
to Giardinetti had been truncated and now ran for only 6 km to Centonelle. Our member travelled this
line again as it is the obvious way to connect with new Metro Line 3 which does not yet meet up with
any other Metro or FS stations. This service is still ridiculously busy at the City centre end, full and
standing in evening peak (as were all trams seen in area), but the majority of passengers all got off
fairly quickly, so by Torpignattara, three stations from the truncated end, it was nearly empty. The line
is still perceived to be under threat, but as the depot is at the “new” terminus at Centocelle, the
decision is to either close completely or keep the entire line open – closing the less busy part achieves
nothing. Approaching Centocelle all trains must now use a 300 metre long connecting track between
the in and out lines as the old outbound route and platform is OOU with all trains now terminating in
either two centre bays or the return track. Google Earth shows this clearly.
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/place/Lodi/@41.8766586,12.5582611,283a,20y,121.49h,44.97t/data
=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x132f618d9d48be3f:0xa181eb8771f9ea62!8m2!3d41.8870418!4d12.519131
3
Centocelle narrow gauge station is cut off from nearby housing by the depot, so our member walked
past it on the level crossing separating it’s two halves looking for a Metro line 3 station even though he
knew it was not adjacent. Forgetting that he had the relevant offline Maps ME App download on his
phone, he followed his nose and finding the main street heading north and then a bus stop confirming
the next stop was at a Metro station, he reached station Mirti in about 10 minutes. Realising his
mistake later he checked and should simply have continued walking east alongside the dual
carriageway and redundant Giardinetti tracks as the new Parco Di Centocello Metro station was much
closer but out of sight around a bend. Even though driverless Metro line 3 was the replacement
onwards to Giardinetti (and beyond), it is still under construction at the city end to be extended from
its current terminus at Lodi one station to San Giovanni to intersect with Line 1. The line is left hand
running and constructed with separate tunnels including a high wide walkway throughout which
reminded your correspondent of riding the tunnel sections of the Docklands Light Railway.
At present with no turnback crossovers nor reversing siding at Lodi it has an unusual operating feature
involving use of a scissors crossover chamber two stops before Lodi to the east of Malatesta. As Line 3
has short workings, the tunnels west from these crossovers to Lodi are currently segregated by
destination so those to/from Alassandrino use the south side tunnel, whereas services doing the full
Line to Pantano use only the north side, with associated wrong line working and use of the Malatasta
crossovers on departure or arrival respectively. Services run every 5 minutes to Alassandrino and every
10 to Pantano. It was a 20 minute walk from Lodi to the nearest FS station, Roma Tuscolana to the
south.

[508] Norway - Vestfold line goes underground in Holmestrand
A new 14.3 km alignment between Holm and Nykirke on the Vestfold line entered service on 28
November. The new alignment has been designed for a maximum speed of 250 km/h and will cut
journey times between Drammen and Eidanger by 5 minutes. It reduces the distance by rail between
Holm and Nykirke by 800 m.
The new line, which replaces a sinuous alignment alongside the Holmestrandfjord, includes the 12.3
km Holmestrandfjellet tunnel. There is an underground station at Holmestrand which has 250 m long
platforms within a cavern that its 12 m high and 30 m wide. There is parking for 250 cars on the
surface, while sections of the former railway alignment are to be converted to cycle paths.

A maximum speed of 100 km/h applied initially through the new tunnel. This was due to be raised to
160 km/h with the timetable change on 11 December. Work on the new alignment started on 16
August 2010.
[509] Slovakia – notes from a recent trip (part 2 - A trip across Slovakia)
As part of a seven day trip your reporter, by accident rather than intent, covered the full length of the
country from west to east in the course of just over 48 hours. The starting point was Záhorská Ves, a
town situated on the Morava River, which forms the Austrian border. It is also at the end of a branch
from Zohor and the furthest west station in Slovakia.

Unit at Záhorská Ves

Zohor is only 26 km from Bratislava main station so, although very rural, the branch is very much a
commuter line. Your reporter was on the 07:30 departure, the last train in the morning and. if that
train had been missed, the next one was nearly 8 hours later. The train, a 2 car diesel unit, was less
than a third full on arrival at Zohor.
From here it was up to Kuty, the border station on the main line to the Czech Republic, then down the
electrified secondary line to Trnava. This has a surprisingly good service of loco hauled trains, although
its main purpose would appear to be as a freight route bypassing Bratislava. From Trnava, a much
modernised station on the principal Slovakian internal route from the capital to Košice, your reporter
took one of the four regional expresses a day from Bratislava to Prievidza. These are notable for doing
one of EGTRE's unusual lines, from Zbehy to Jelšovce. The train was made up largely of refurbished
stock, and wasn't as busy as other long distance services (around 40% of residents, plus visitors aged
62 and over, are entitled to free travel so it's not surprising), so the journey was very pleasant

although pretty slow. Prievidza is a lively university town and your reporter took the opportunity to
have a quick look around and get some lunch.
The scenery until now had been pleasant but unremarkable, but the next journey, on a very busy
modern DMU, climbed up into the central Slovakian hills to the remote junction station of Horná
Štubňa, situated around 2000 feet above sea level. In order to gain the final bit of required altitude the
line circles around and dives underneath the main north to south line before entering the station from
the east side.

Various trains at Horna Stubna. The modern unit on the right was your reporter’s train from Prievidza, the yellow unit is on a
Zvolen to Vrutky service and the loco hauled set seemed to be spare.

Your reporter then changed into what he expected to be the final journey of the day, which was on a
diesel hauled train over the closure threatened but spectacular line from here to Zvolen. The line
climbs higher into the hills, providing some spectacular views, before dropping down to join the main
line from Bratislava line at Hronská Dúbrava.
On arrival at Zvolen main station a 30 minute walk across town to his booked hotel, next to Zvolen
Mesto station, was anticipated, as the next service there didn't leave for nearly an hour, but your
reporter was lucky in that the previous train still hadn't departed, awaiting a late running connection,
so he hopped on and was in his hotel 10 minutes later. Incidentally Zvolen Mesto is a little gem of a
station, having been beautifully restored and is situated alongside a busy level crossing in a nice part of
town.

Unit at the charming little station of Zvolen Mesto.

[510] Sweden – An Introduction to Stockholm Urban Travel (Part 1)
This is based on a visit by two members from 2 - 3 September 2016
Introduction
Prior to a railtour starting in Stockholm, a member who had visited Stockholm several times before
conducted a 1½ day tour of the urban transport highlights of Stockholm for a friend he was
accompanying. Readers may find helpful Robert Schwandl's Tram Atlas Nordeuropa / Northern Europe
published in 2013. In many places our member has used the English language versions of names since
they are widely used in local publicity. All urban transport in the Stockholm is sponsored by the
regional Storstockholms Lokaltrafik (SL), but operation is contracted out to a variety of operators. In
1967 Sweden changed the 'rule of the road' from left- to right-hand running on the road system; this
still has an impact today. Nearly all railways still run on the left but light rail systems and tramways
generally on the right.
Arlanda Express: Airport to Stockholm-Central
The correspondent and his friend arrived in Sweden at Arlanda Airport, which has been Stockholm's
main airport since 1983. The railway infrastructure for the airport comprises a loop off the main line
north of Stockholm between Stockholm and Uppsala with an airport Central station served by SL local
trains and a dead end branch with 2 underground stations called Arlanda Norra and Arlanda Södra.
These two stations are served by the Arlanda Express shuttle between there and Stockholm Central
station and charge a premium fare for the non-stop journey. The airport railway infrastructure and the
Arlanda Express were opened in 1999 – 2000 and all now belong to A-Train AB; this is owned by a
consortium of two New South Wales pension funds and an investment arm of the Chinese
government.

The Arlanda Express class X3 trains were built by GEC-Alstom in Birmingham, UK. Our members had
pre-purchased tickets for a significant discount from the operator's website. Curiously the only ticket
identification for control was a large printed number which was scanned by a conductress on the train.
The service mostly runs every 15 minutes and the journey from Arlanda Norra to the dedicated
Arlanda Express platforms at Stockholm Central took the scheduled 20 minutes. An electronic display
in the train showed a maximum speed of 204 km/h.
Tunnelbana
Stockholm Central station and the hub station of the T-Bana (Tunnelbana) metro network at T-
Centralen were extremely busy early on a Friday afternoon. Nevertheless our members had no
difficulty in buying 72-hour SL smartcard rover tickets; there is a base charge for a reusable smartcard,
and one member took advantage of a cheaper rate for over 65s. The Tunnelbana started operations in
1950 and comprises 3 groups of lines, the gröna linjen (Green Line) mainly opened between 1950 and
1960, the röda linjen (Red Line) between 1964 and 1978 and the blå linjen (Blue Line) between 1975
and 1985. All 3 lines feature left-hand running and third rail current collection and are mainly deep
level in rock tunnels, but with some spectacular bridges over waterways. Many stations are in bare
rock tunnels; at some stations, access for the less mobile is by inclined lifts in the escalator shafts, as
will feature at Liverpool Street station on London's Elizabeth Line. Entry to platforms is by automatic
ticket barriers. Most trains are now operated by 2 or 3 sets of 3-section articulated sets built by
Adtranz / Bombardier. All feature Automatic Train Operation. The SL owned Tunnelbana is operated
under contract by MTR of Hong Kong. This travelogue does not cover a number of short T-Bana rides
in the central area primarily accessing the hotel and restaurants. In early afternoon, the members
visited the Trafik-Nostalgiska Förlaget transport bookshop in Gamla Stan which is the old town just
south of the modern city centre.
Roslagsbana
The prime target of the afternoon riding was the 891mm gauge Roslagsbana which runs from
Stockholm's Östra terminus and splits into 3 branches. Route length is now 65 kms but it was once part
of a much larger network mostly not electrified. What is left is electrified at 1,500 volts d.c. with
overhead current collection. It is at present worked by 3-car emus built between 1988 and 1995, but
more trains have just been ordered from Stadler, with options that could replace the present fleet.
Most trains are a single set but with some doubles in the peak. There are no ticket barriers but on-
train ticket inspection instead. Our members rode on the prime line to Österskär. Some of this branch
from its junction at Roslags Näsby is single track, but some parts have recently been doubled with right
hand running. Arriva, a subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn, now operates the Roslagsbana.

A Roslagsbanan train of type X10p at Stockholms Östra station having arrived from Österskär. SNABBTÅG indicates that the train
is a limited stop service

[511] Switzerland – Le Châble station to be moved
Line 133 runs from Martigny to Sembrancher and Le Châble. The last 500 metres of this line are to be
replaced by a deviation and new Le Châble station. Work started in September this year and is to be
completed for the December 2018 timetable. The objective is to create a new underground station,
create 46000 m2 for development and link the railway to the gondola station.

REST OF THE WORLD

[512] China – Two new Passenger Dedicated Lines opened
The final 32 km section of the Qingdao – Rongcheng PDL opened on 16 November. The Passenger-
Dedicated Line starts from the Qingdao Bei station in the north of the city and runs to Yantai, Weihai
and Rongcheng. There are 18 trains each way per day, taking around 2 h 30 min.
Construction of this line began in 2011, the initial Rongcheng – Jimo Bei section opening for regional
services on 28 December 2014. The project included the construction of a 299 km route suitable for
250 km/h operation, along with 36 km of connecting lines and 14 stations.
The 247 km Chongqing – Wanzhou PDL serving the Three Gorges area and the Yangtze River Economic
Belt was opened for revenue operation on 28 November. There are 21 trains each way with a journey
time of around 1 h 45 min. Some services run through from Wanzhou to Chengdu Dong using the
300 km/h Chengdu – Chongqing line, with an end-to-end time of 3 h 19 min.
This line, which has been under construction since 2013, runs through the area around the Three
Gorges reservoir, which is one of the poorest regions in central China. It serves the towns on the north
side of the Yangtze River. An extension from Wanzhou to Zhengzhou through Badong and Nanyang is
under construction as part of the current plan to develop eight east-west and eight north-south high

speed corridors. This route is also designed for 250 km/h operation. It has 57 tunnels with a total
length of 76 km and 216 bridges and viaducts with a total length of 92.5 km.

[513] Myanmar - A journey in South East Burma (Part 1)
Set high in the mountains Golden Rock is one of the top tourist destinations in Myanmar, the new
name of the country formerly called Burma. The railway station that serves as a jumping off point is
Kyaikto, and a member started his journey from this station assisted by a local guide who purchased
tickets in Upper class for them both. This was no simple task – they had to be ordered two hours
before and collected an hour later. With no computerised central ticketing system, the station staff
would have to telephone Yangon (formerly Rangoon) to find out which seats would be vacated and
available. Only then could tickets be issued for the 07:15 Yangon to Mawlamyine train our member
was taking. The station was surrounded by stalls selling food and other less essential wares, and a
seating area by the steps leading down to the single platform was completely occupied by locals
staring at an overhead television screen. This area was quickly vacated when the bell was rung to
indicate that the train was approaching, and the platform became busy. The ‘bell’ was actually a length
of steel rail suspended outside the stationmasters office, and was rung a second time when the train
was about five minutes away.

The station ‘bell’ is actually a short length of steel rail suspended from a frame and rung approximately 10 minutes
and 5 minutes before a train arrives. Station notices, timetables and signs at all but major stations are only in Burmese
script. As Kyaikhto is a major tourist station the times of express trains (but not locals) are shown in English as well.

When it came in sight it proved to be hauled by an ex-Indian Railways class YDM4 metre gauge
locomotive, made redundant in India by the Unigauge project, and now with a second lease of life in
Myanmar.

An ex-Indian Railways metre gauge YDM4 diesel approaches Kyaikhto station on the non-platform line with an express from
Yangon. Expresses have variable numbers of goods vans – this one has only one.

It arrived on the non-platform line and on boarding, as expected, two people had to be evicted from
the reserved seats. Before the train could depart, another train, the 08:00 Mawlamyine – Yangon had
to enter the station. This was another YDM4, and the two trains departed simultaneously – our
members train now being 25 minutes late.
The line is single track and lightly ballasted, giving the slow and bouncy ride characteristic of railways
in Myanmar. Almost all interest was on the left hand side of the train, where forested low hills with
golden pagodas were visible, and all station buildings were on this side as well. A broad plain with rice
paddies stretched away on the right hand side. At Taungzun loco DD921 was present with a
permanent way train of rails and after Hnin Pale the river Belin was crossed by a sizeable bridge.
Throughout the journey there were a number of small villages served by request stops – all of which
were passed though without stopping. Theinzeik was reached after 90 minutes and contained a
passenger train with loco DF1228 on a Mawlyamine to Bago local. This comprised two carriages, two
tank wagons, a load of gravel and several general goods vans with a brake van completing the consist.
A typical local train in fact. The loco had been shut down and was restarted as our members train
departed. The next major station was Thahton and proved something of a surprise with barbed wire
fences on the right and left (the platform side). It transpired that the station had given access to a
restricted area, which foreigners required special permission to enter. Tickets are routinely collected
on leaving stations, and in this case additional checks were made to ensure that the necessary
documentation has been obtained.

Barbed wire fences on either side of the tracks reveal that Thahton was once an entry point to a restricted area where the
former Military rulers were having trouble with local ethnic groups.

At the southern edge of the town a line diverged left, and was obviously in use. Subsequently,
returning by road to Yangon, the opportunity to call in at the station and quiz the stationmaster was
taken. The line goes to the Rhino Cement quarry and works, but most of the traffic now goes out by
road. However, every month or so a mixed freight trundles up the line bringing back cement, stone
and anything else requiring transport. Then came a real eye opener. Every ten days (an unusual
interval, but he was adamant) a single coach passenger train runs up the branch departing 10:35
conveying passengers (always locals as presumably no westerners know about it) as far as the village
of Myaing Ka Lay which is just before the cement works, returning a few hours later.
The next station – Yinnyein – had another YDM4 loco present, this time on a stone train. Piles of
ballast sized stones were present on either side of the tracks. Ten minutes later another station – Zin
Kyaik – went one better, with grading equipment sorting stone into neat piles at the far end of the
station. By 16:00 the hills were receding off to the left and the train was moving slowly over a broad
plain towards Mottama and the crossing of the Salween River, locally referred to as the Thanlwin
River. This is a great river, rising on the Tibetan plateau and travelling 2,800 kilometres to the Gulf of
Andaman and lies across the direct route from Yangon to Mawlamyine and the southern part of the
country. Until 2005 the railway ended at Mottama and passengers transferred to a ferry over the
Salween River to Mawlyamine, called Moulmein in colonial times. Mottama is shown on google maps
as Martaban and this illustrates a common problem. Transliteration from Burmese can give several
alternative spellings to place names. The Salween is a large river and when swollen by summer rains
was difficult to cross, the problem being compounded if late running meant a journey in the dark.
Weary travellers must have been glad to see the landing stage at Strand Road in Mawlamyine and the

nearby grand colonial Mawlamyine Hotel, now sadly closed. All this changed with completion of the
Thanlwin bridge in 2005 which runs first on embankment then concrete piers to the steel lattice bridge
over the river. The approach structure of the rail bridge on the Mottama bank is 2.29 km long and on
the Mawlamyine bank it is 1.96 km long. The total length of the rail bridge is 6.6 km. It is a combined
road/rail bridge with separate road and single track railway.
Today the old line can be seen, still intact but overgrown, by the side of the embankment and at a
lower level where it eventually goes under the bridge approach to reach the old terminus near the
river side. The new Mottama station is on the new line, 1.1km from the bridge proper. Trains in
Myanmar do not have glass in the windows – louvered steel shutters slide down to keep the elements
out – so hanging out of the window for photographs is not a problem. And the bridge, approached by a
long curve, is a very fine sight.

On the curve approaching the bridge from the Mottama side.

The two lane road sweeps up to join the railway and bridge at either end. Mawlamyine is visible at the far end.

The Thanlwin bridge seen from the middle of the river to the east. The bridge bypasses the island in the middle of the channel.

Road traffic joins just before the river crossing starts and at the far end road traffic leaves and the
railway continues on concrete piers through the western part of the Mawlamyine for four kilometres
before reaching the new station at Mawlyamine, constructed as part of the project to join the railway
from Yangon to Ye and Dawei. The three platforms are not particularly impressive, but the station
building is, being very large and built in grandiose style to illustrate the importance of the railway. Our
member was whisked away by car to his hotel, a journey of several kilometres as the station is on the
outskirts of the town.

The new Mawlamyine station is built on a grand scale, both inside and out. Inside the main hall is deserted – in total contrast
to the platform on the other side of the barrier, which is bustling with stalls and people.

[514] USA – Fordham Station Renewal
The New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Metro-North Railroad has completed
restoration and upgrades of Fordham Station, including a rebuilt northbound platform with double the
capacity, a new entrance leading directly to Webster Avenue at 193rd Street and new permanent
artwork. These upgrades follow the complete renovation of the historic station building on Fordham
Road, which was completed in 2014.
Fordham is the busiest “reverse-peak” station in the US, used by residents of the Bronx commuting out
of New York to work each day. The larger platform gives passengers greater room on the platform, will
mean less crowding and better on-time performance as trains spend less time waiting for passengers
to board and exit the train. Among many improvements, passenger shelters have been modernized
with “Push for Heat” technology.

[515] USA – Safety Standard Updates
The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has proposed updates to the US passenger train safety
standards to allow high-speed trains that can travel up to 220 miles per hour. The proposed updates
represent nearly a decade of work by FRA’s passenger rail division.
The proposed updates would establish a new category of passenger equipment, Tier III, for trains
traveling up to 220 mph. The updates would offer an alternative method for evaluating
crashworthiness.
Although Tier III trains will be required to have exclusive track to operate at speeds above 125 mph,
the new standards will allow Tier III trains to safely share track with current Tier I and Tier II commuter,
intercity, and Acela trains. Compatibility between equipment types is a key strategy to allow trains to
share existing corridors to reach downtown stations.

List of Special Trains on Lines without Passenger Services
Note – Entries marked with a “+” were updated within the last four weeks

Germany 2016 (Tübingen Hbf -) Stuttgart-Untertürkheim - Abzw Nürnberger Str. (- Nürnberg Hbf) and return.
17. 12. EFZ (Luxembourg Hbf -) Abzw Moselbrücke - Konz (- Saarbrücken Hbf) and return. [LU/DE]
17. 12. + 5519 u.a. Dresden-Neustadt - Dresden-Friedrichstadt
31. 12. OSEF

Europe 2016 Sulmona - Carovilli and return. IT
26. 12. + Molise

Germany 2017 DGEG Goods lines around Hagen and Köln
21. 01. DGEG u.a. Rheine - Spelle, TNB, GME
18. 02. + DGEG u.a. Stolberg Altstadt - Breinig, Eschweiler-Weisweiler - Frenz
18. 03. Seidlitz HGK/RWE
29. 03. Siede Tram tour of München
Schienentrabi Lommatzsch - Ziegenhain [also 4./5.VI, 9./10.IX]
01/02. 04. VEFS Shuttles Bocholt - Mussum [also 10.IX]
01. 05. + TG Ferkeltaxi Seelingstädt(b Werdau), Kayna
01. 05. zugparty (Chemnitz Hbf -) Riesa - Röderau (- Hamburg) and return
06. 05. NbSE Staßfurt - Egeln
Schienentrabi Rochlitz(Sachs) - Rochsburg - Penig [also 1/2.VII, 12/13.VIII]
06/07. 05. Kranichstein Shuttles Bw Darmstadt-Kranichstein - Abzw. Stockschneise (- Groß-Gerau-Dornberg) /-
06/07. 05. Darmstadt Hbf
20/21. 05. + DGEG Special train in Saarland, Lothringen and Luxemburg [DE/FR/LU]
25-28. 05. + TG Ferkeltaxi Shuttles Olbernhau - Neuhausen(Erzgeb)
DGEG Provisional date for special train
15-18. 06. + Arnstadt Shuttles Bw Arnstadt - Erfurter Kreuz
20. 08. + DGEG [also 24.IX] Provisional date for special train
21. 08. Osningbahn Shuttles Diepholz - Sulingen(Han)
DGEG Provisional date for special train
16/17. 09. DGEG Provisional date for special train
23. 09.
01. 10.
28. 10.
25. 11.

Europe 2017 NBiK u. a. Bad St. Leonhard - Zeltweg AT
04. 03. + KŽC u. a. Mimoň st. nádr., Liberec doln. nádr., Černousy - podg. Studniska, Lubań Śl.- PL
Leśna, podg. Wilka - podg. Ręczyn, Turoszów[CZ/PL/DE]
07-09. 04. + Special trains in Hungary HU

26. 04. + PTG (Chemnitz Hbf - Forst(Laus) -) Żagań - Głogów - Leszno (- Wolsztyn. [DE/PL] PL
-02. 05. Special train to Amsterdam Harbour NL
Special trains in Denmark DK
29. 04. zugparty Special trains in Finland FI
``Holiday in the Railcar`` (Ostslowakei, Breitspur, Stahlwerk Haniska při Košiciach) SK
29. 04. Mercia Special train in the Balkans RO
u. a. Потутори/Potutory - Бережани/Brzezany UA
18-23. 05. + PTG Special train in Montenegro ME
u.a. Radošina, Topoľčianky SK
01-09. 07. PTG

05-13. 08. + KŽC

02-09. 09. + PTG

01-08. 10. + Wendelin

01-06. 10. + PTG

21. 20. + KŽC
-22. 10.

Overseas 2017

07/08. 01. + HIT Davenport - Watsonville Jct US
Special train in Jordan JO
10-15. 05. + BLS

Overseas 2018 + Darjeeling Narrow Gauge lines in India IN

18. 03.
-04. 04.