Historical Special 'Presidential Train' Steaming Its Way to Slovakia

Bratislava, July 2 (TASR) – A unique project to mark the centenary of Czechoslovakia’s founding is the ‘Presidential Train’, which has already left Prague on its journey via Brno and to Slovakia, slated to arrive in Bratislava on Tuesday, July 3, TASR learnt on Monday.

“The train will be available to the public at the Transport Museum between 12-5 p.m. [on Tuesday] and on Wednesday between 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Then it will set out to continue along its route, although the saloon car of [heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne] Franz Ferdinand d’Este is set to remain in our museum until July 14,” Ernest Huska of the Transport Museum told TASR.

After departing from Bratislava, the train, hauled by a steam locomotive, will visit railway stations in Nitra (July 5-6), Zvolen (July 7-8), Lucenec (July 9), Zilina (July 10-11) and Kosice (July 12-13), before returning to the Czech Republic.

The train will be composed of five railway saloon cars, which served Czechoslovak presidents between 1918-39 and in the post-WWII period on their domestic as well as foreign trips. The project has been organised by the National Technical Museum in Prague in cooperation with Czech Railways, Slovak rail infrastructure owner ZSR and civic association Spolok Vyhrevne Vrutky.

“Come and see the elegance of the sunset years of the [Austro-Hungarian] monarchy and the first Czechoslovak Republic. You’re unlikely to have another such opportunity before 2118,” added Huska.