Traveling through the train stations in Chrastava and Hrádek nad Nisou will be more convenient

The train stations in Hrádek nad Nisou and Chrastava will undergo major modernization. After years of preparation for both projects, the Railway Administration has selected a single contractor for the construction. Work is set to begin this September and is scheduled for completion in the fall of next year. The main construction work and service disruptions will take place throughout the summer of 2025.

Passengers will appreciate the modernization of all platforms, including the addition of new ones on the street side of the tracks. Most passengers will now board trains directly from the street. The currently severely neglected underpasses leading to the other platforms will be modernized. At the city’s request, the Chrastava underpass will be extended all the way to the industrial area behind the station. The station buildings at both stations will also undergo renovations.

The Liberec Region and its German partners have been working toward technical improvements along the entire Liberec–Zittau line for nearly 15 years. Repairs carried out many years ago were only partial and completely bypassed the stations. So far, only the Zittau station has undergone a major modernization in 2017. Now, the decades-old signaling system will be replaced, and speeds will be increased at the stations as well as on the most time-critical section between Chrastava and Hrádek nad Nisou, which was not fully renovated during the previous repairs.

Neither the Liberec Region nor passengers could be satisfied with the current state of affairs. The increasing numbers of passengers and trains have pushed the outdated signaling system to its limits; in fact, the line’s capacity is so fully utilized during peak hours that trains are even running late, even though they only have to pass through some stops. An even bigger problem is that, with a half-hour interval, trains cannot serve all stops and make connections at the Liberec and Zittau hubs simultaneously. Instead of making connections in Zittau, oncoming trains wait for each other in Hrádek nad Nisou, the travel time is longer, and by the time they reach Varnsdorf, they are unable to serve the entire line; specifically, the final section requires an additional crossing and another train set.

The construction projects now getting underway will help improve the situation, but fully optimal operations will only be possible once the Polish section is upgraded, which is still pending.

The Liberec–Hrádek nad Nisou section is the second-busiest in the Liberec Region after the Frýdlant line, carrying about 2,400 passengers per day. Cross-border traffic is also heavy, with approximately 800 passengers per day, ranking this border crossing among the top ten busiest in the Czech Republic.

Press release from SPRÁVA ŽELEZNIC dated July 26, 2024, in PDF format is available here.