Monday, January 27, 2025 In response to infrastructure enhancements in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, Stadler will provide additional traction systems for trains operated by Leo Express, a private Central European transport company. These systems are slated for design and production at Stadler’s Frauenfeld facility in Switzerland. Both the Czech Republic and Slovakia are modernizing sections of their railway networks to adopt the European standard 25kV/50Hz AC traction, moving away from the existing 3kV DC setup.
Thanks to a grant from the Czech Ministry of Transport, Leo Express will upgrade its Stadler FLIRT trains with new 25kV/50Hz traction systems, complementing the existing 3kV DC traction. This enhancement will enable the trains to operate seamlessly across both updated and existing electrical infrastructures throughout the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and even extend to networks in Poland. On January 23, 2025, Leo Express tasked Stadler with the installation of these systems on their FLIRT trains, a project that will be carried out at Stadler’s northeastern Swiss plant.
Czech suppliers are also set to play a role in this project. The integration of the 25kV system necessitates updates to both hardware and software. It will involve enhancements to the Train Control and Management System (TCMS), including updates to diagnostics and the addition of a control feature for toggling between the two traction systems.
The update process will also include a weight evaluation.
