# ALBANIA | Railways



## 7t (Jun 4, 2006)

Our railway infrastructure is currently in an abysmal state. The government is devising plans to give them through concession though. There were a couple of bids earlier in the year by two czech and estionian companies that wanted to take over the whole network but the offers weren't satisfying enough so both bids failed.


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## EC 120 Košičan (May 16, 2009)

those people on those mašinách no mistake. It was also nás.U if you are permitted to ride? Your T669 series goes under the name of our 770th I would like to ask if they know what is the official web site of the railway in your country. Thank you in advance

*http://opava-vlaky.blog.cz/*


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## Chavito (Jun 1, 2005)

Incredible pictures!!!!

Which is the actual situation of the Albanian network?


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## Jozsef Bedenek (Aug 24, 2009)

*A few more pictures*

From October, 2008:



























Gallery of the 2008 visit:
http://www.freeweb.hu/mozdonyok/phpalbum/main.php?cmd=album&var1=081019_23/


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## EC 120 Košičan (May 16, 2009)

Albanian railway network was begun in 1917. The total number of operating is 447 kilometers and for independent traction.

http://www.luko2.com/images/mapy/info_mapa_albanie_zeleznice.jpg


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## alacanti (Jun 14, 2003)

Thanks for the pictures. I love this kind of trains and the landscape is beautiful.


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## Jozsef Bedenek (Aug 24, 2009)

zaphod said:


> looks absolutely terrible, 40 kph, bouncing around in the grass hoping the crappy old locomotive won't burst into flames? Why do they still run trains and who rides them? I'd think a bus would be far more attractive to travelers. Are there no roads, even dirt ones


The main roads connecting the bigger cities are in very good condition, and they are building more and more so called highways with 2+2 lanes and speed limit set at 90 kph. What was interesting that at junctions they built roundabouts to reduce costs, and on the earlier built sections there are speed limits to 30 or 40 kph, because houses are built near the highway, and garages could be approached directly from there.  

The only crappy part of our trip was between Fier and Vlore, where the new road is not finished yet. 

There's lot of private direct taxis connecting the cities, but as far as I know there's no national coach companies. They are much faster than the railway, but the prices are also higher. The Vlore-Pogradec trip costs about 3$, and that is the most expensive one-way trip in the country.

Wednesday morning in Lushnje:









On the Tirane-Shkoder, Tirane-Pogradec and Tirane-Vlore lines there's only one train a day, so as I saw they were crowded.



EC 120 Košičan;41762028 said:


> I would like to ask if they know what is the official web site of the railway in your country. Thank you in advance


The official site is not available, fares and timetables could be found here http://www.mpptt.gov.al, under Transporti > Transporti Hekurudhor >

The first link is a summary about the network, the second loads the timetables, and last one the fares.



Chavito said:


> Which is the actual situation of the Albanian network?


Check out http://www.angelfire.com/ak/hekurudha/index.html, although it's not recently updated it's accurate.

I've uploaded the gallery from our last trip, if you're interested you can find it here.


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## EC 120 Košičan (May 16, 2009)

Our official site of Czech Railways a.s (corporation) http://www.cd.cz/ and timetables are the best on this page http://www.zelpage.cz/razeni/09/vlaky/cd-118. On this page you can find timetables from different year. Procedure: LIST OF COURSES-choose track or identify sorting and trains from passenger trains to better SuperCity Pendolino. Procedure: Sorting Train and choose the Czech Republic in 2009. Even cutting the trains by clicking on a coach you can find out what the wagon trains moved at a particular train and the train which will continue and some information about the coaches.


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## Chavito (Jun 1, 2005)

Incredible pictures!

Nowadays the international link of the Albanian Railways is just for freight trains. But did any regular passenger train use this line?


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## Jozsef Bedenek (Aug 24, 2009)

Chavito said:


> Nowadays the international link of the Albanian Railways is just for freight trains. But did any regular passenger train use this line?


That line is a freight only line, was built in 1984.


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## perdurabo (May 16, 2006)

Jozsef Bedenek said:


>


Polish steamer TKt48, one of my favourites, this is first steamer i saw and ride in as kid, in Poland it had nickname "donkey"


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## blogen_ (May 8, 2009)

:nuts:


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## Kulla (May 6, 2010)

*EBRD to finance feasibility study for Albania's Tirana-Durres railway network*

Balkans.com Business News Correspondent in Tirana - 14.06.2010
Albania’s Prime Minister Sali Berisha appreciated the support of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD ) in funding projects in sectors of importance for the Albanian economy, mainly in the sector of transports and energy. 

During a meeting with the EBRD Director for Western Balkans, Claudio Viezzoli, Berisha expressed the Albanian government's full commitment for the realization of Tirana ring-road project, considering it one of the vital projects for the economic development of the country and the capital, but also as a project to improve the citizens' living standards. 

Claudio Viezzoli highlighted the progress of cooperation with the Albanian government.

Caludio Viezzoli praised the positive progress of cooperation with the Albanian government and briefed on the expansion of this cooperation through financing the feasibility study for Tirana – Durres railway network, which will include Tirana airport


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## Kulla (May 6, 2010)

Qeveria i rikthehet projektit të trenit elektrik

TIRANE - Qeveria shqiptare i rikthehet projektit të trenit elektrik. Berisha ka pranuar sot që financimin e projektit të studimit të fiziblitetit për hekurudhën Tiranë-Durrës, i cili përfshin dhe aeroportin e Tiranës ta kryeje Banka Europiane për Rindertim dhe Zhvillim. Kryeministri Berisha ka takuar sot drejtorin për vendet e Ballkanit Perendimor të BERZH Claudio Viezoli ku vlerësoi kontributin e kësaj banke në financimin e projekteve sic është rehablitimi i rrugës Fier-Tepelenë, projekti i zhvillimit të rrugëve bashkiake, projekti Levan-Vlorë, TEC i Vlorës, Porti i Durrësit etj.

Historia e projektit të trenit elektrik ka nisur vite më parë qysh në kohën e ish-kryeministrit Nano dhe ish ministrit të transproteve Spartak Poci. Në 2005 qeveria shqiptare e sapo dalë nga zgjedhjet dhe e kryesuar nga Berisha prishi në mënyrë të njëanshme kontratën me kompaninë amerikane “General electric” cështje e cila i kaloi në 2008 Gjykatës Ndërkombëtare të arbitrazhit e cila gjobiti Shqipërinë me 20 milion dollarë.

Projekti i trenit elektrik përfshinte ndërtimin e një hekurudhe të re 38 kilometra të gjatë që do të lidhte Tiranën me Durrësin e më pas me Golemin. Bashkë me hekurudhën parashikohej edhe ndërtimi i infrastrukturës përfshirë sinjalistikën dhe sistemin e telekomunikacionit që mendohej të montohej në vagonët dhe stacionet e trenit. Krahas kësaj, parashikohej edhe ndërtimi i një degëzimi rreth 6 kilometra të gjatë që do të lidhte hekurudhën me aeroportin "Nënë Tereza". Më një shumë totale rreth 75 milionë dollarë, projekti parashikohej të përmbyllej brenda një periudhe kohore 2 vjeçare duke filluar më pas shfrytëzimin e saj.

(m.a/News24/BalkanWeb) 

Some more news about buying Electric Trains


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## Uppsala (Feb 26, 2010)

Jozsef Bedenek said:


> That line is a freight only line, was built in 1984.


Why do they never open that line for passenger service?

If they open it for passenger service it should change a lot for the Albanian railways. That should make it possible to take a train from Albania to the rest of Europe.


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## Alexriga (Nov 25, 2007)

I like it!


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## 6opuC (Apr 22, 2007)

Uppsala said:


> Why do they never open that line for passenger service?
> 
> If they open it for passenger service it should change a lot for the Albanian railways. That should make it possible to take a train from Albania to the rest of Europe.


Maybe becouse money. Freight is much more profitable than passenger transport.


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## hammersklavier (Jan 29, 2010)

But before international rail services are even considered, the internal rail network has to be modernized to a massive degree. 40 kph is what? 30 mph? Albania's new roads are superior to the rail system--I find profitability unlikely even for a Tirane-Podgorica link.


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## 6opuC (Apr 22, 2007)

25mph.


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## endrity (Jun 20, 2009)

I think we'll still see investment in the road infrastructure for at least 5 more years. However, by 2015, if everything that is planned to be built until now is really built, than potentially we could see the focus shift from road to railways. Croatia is currently going through the same process, and Poland and the Czech Republic pretty much are done rebuilding their main highways and are now planning investments in rail.


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## eu01 (Oct 14, 2005)

ABWera said:


> EU and EBRD Support Rehabilitation of Tirana - Durres Railway in Albania


It would be great, but... haven't they already dismantled the track all the way to the center of Tirana and replaced it by a new road? Yes, they did plan to build a new station somewhere in the suburbs, but this undermines the sense of the entire investment. The most important advantage of existing railways is a fast transfer of passengers to the heart of big cities, otherwise it is a solution for some hobbyists mainly, not for a mass transportation.


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## Bisofsa (Jun 18, 2017)

eu01 said:


> It would be great, but... haven't they already dismantled the track all the way to the center of Tirana and replaced it by a new road? Yes, they did plan to build a new station somewhere in the suburbs, but this undermines the sense of the entire investment. The most important advantage of existing railways is a fast transfer of passengers to the heart of big cities, otherwise it is a solution for some hobbyists mainly, not for a mass transportation.


Supposedly it will be connected with Light railway from the new station to the new boulevard. 
Railway is unfortunate in Albania, communism was one of the worst thing that could happen to us, but at least they left around 500km of railway behind. To think the fact that only in the last 10 years they spend billions and billions of euros on new roads but not a single cent for the railway...


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## ABWera (Apr 26, 2009)

Access by rail to the center of Tirana should be guaranteed, otherwise it would actually undermine the sense of this investment.


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## VITORIA MAN (Jan 31, 2013)

Hekurudha të Shqipërisë. Chemins de fer albanais. Ferrocarriles albaneses. Albanian railways. by Only Tradition, en Flickr


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## 2mchris (Jun 18, 2016)

Obviously a lot of work to do.


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## ABWera (Apr 26, 2009)

EU Expresses Interest in Albania-Greece Railway


A 30-year project for the construction of a railway line between Albania and the southern neighboring country of Greece seems to be taking concrete steps, as the Official Journal of the European Union published a statement of an open procedure for the implementation of an evaluation of the...




albaniandailynews.com


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## eu01 (Oct 14, 2005)

What is the actual situation of the passenger rail system in Albania? According to some news, the circulation of passenger trains has ceased a few months ago. On the other hand, the Albanian State Railways' website still exists and publishes the scheme of its network with departure times as of... 2011. Do any trains circulate though?


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## eu01 (Oct 14, 2005)

(double post)


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## jonasry (Feb 6, 2011)

eu01 said:


> What is the actual situation of the passenger rail system in Albania? According to some news, the circulation of passenger trains has ceased a few month ago. On the other hand, the Albanian State Railways' website still exists and publishes the scheme of its network with departure times as of... 2011. Do any trains circulate though?


Facebook to the rescue, the unofficial (at least it seems like that), account Hekurudha Shqiptare posts information on which trains are running.


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## ABWera (Apr 26, 2009)

Work starts for new Tirana-Durres railway








Work Starts for New Tirana-Durres Railway


The works for the construction of the Tirana-Durrës railway line started a few days ago in the field where the project implementing company has started with the removal of the old rails and depreciated beams.




albaniandailynews.com


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## lechevallierpatrick (Nov 22, 2012)

Where exactly in downtown Tirana the new railway station (for passengers) will be built?


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## Bisofsa (Jun 18, 2017)

lechevallierpatrick said:


> Where exactly in downtown Tirana the new railway station (for passengers) will be built?












West Area


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## lechevallierpatrick (Nov 22, 2012)

Thank you!So that will bring the railway line nearer to Downtown Tirana,probably near Lapraka.What will be the distance between Tirana's center and the station?Will the new line be electrified?


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## Bisofsa (Jun 18, 2017)

lechevallierpatrick said:


> Thank you!So that will bring the railway line nearer to Downtown Tirana,probably near Lapraka.What will be the distance between Tirana's center and the station?Will the new line be electrified?





https://www.tirana.al/uploads/2019/1/20190111111630_m10-tirana-west-terminal-2.pdf



There will be an tram/light-rail station from the West point till New Boulevard. I dont think they will go further till city center but that is close enough.
And I dont know, probably but who knows it can also be diesel. Railway was not taken seriously so i would not be surprised if its not electrified.


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## ABWera (Apr 26, 2009)

*Durres-Pristina railway's feasibility study near completion*








Durrës-Pristina Railway’s Feasibility Study Near Completion







albaniandailynews.com


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## ABWera (Apr 26, 2009)

*Transport Community Supports Albania’s Rail Sector Reforms*








Transport Community Supports Albania’s Rail Sector Reforms - Transport Community


Delegation of the Transport Community Permanent Secretariat visited Albania on 1-2 February for a series of meetings with the Ministry of Energy …




www.transport-community.org


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