The first of 20 modern trainsets for PKP Intercity is already in Poland. On August 12, at high noon, the blue-and-silver trainset arrived at the Wrocław Główny railway station. The train departed from Savigliano, Italy, on Friday, August 9. It covered a route of approximately 1500 km.
Since the trainset does not yet have a safety certificate and was considered a special shipment, it was hauled by a PKP CARGO EU45 locomotive. For the transit through Italy, Austria, and the Czech Republic, the freight carrier provided a crew of four train drivers – one for each country’s section of the route. In Poland, the Pendolino will operate under the EIC Premium brand.
– EIC Premium is a new standard for Polish railways. It is not just a change in travel comfort for PKP Intercity passengers. It is also a wide range of work that other companies in our Group have put into the implementation of this project. The modernization of railway lines by the infrastructure manager, PKP PLK, and the investments made by PKP Energetyka mean that the new train will set a new, higher level for the entire railway – says Jakub Karnowski, President of the Management Board of PKP SA.
PKP CARGO, which brought the Pendolino train to Poland, has been developing its international operations for several years. Currently, the company holds safety certificates that authorize it to carry out independent transport operations in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria, Hungary, as well as Germany and Belgium.
– Transporting the Pendolino is an honor for us and proof that we are operating effectively outside of Poland. I would like PKP CARGO to be a Central European champion in a few years with a strong position in the region. We want revenue from transport work carried out outside of Poland to constitute a significant element of our income. We want to be even more competitive – says Łukasz Boroń, President of PKP CARGO.