Stadler installs additional traction system on Leo Express trains

Following infrastructure upgrades to rail networks in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, Stadler will provide an additional traction system for trains operated by the private Central European transport company, Leo Express. This system will be designed and manufactured at Stadler’s Frauenfeld in Switzerland.

The Czech Republic and Slovakia are upgrading parts of their railway infrastructure, introducing the European standard 25kV/50Hz AC and replacing the current 3kV DC traction.

Leo Express, the Central European transportation company, will be adding additional traction components to its Stadler FLIRT trains. This is a result of a subsidy allocated by the Czech Ministry of Transport to the Leo Express, enabling them to upgrade the five-car FLIRTs with 25kV/50Hz traction. This new system will supplement the 3kV traction, which these trains are already equipped with.

The dual traction systems will in future allow the trains to operate on both types of electrical infrastructure. It will mean also that they can run on all parts of the networks in Czech Republic and Slovakia, as well as on the networks they serve in Poland.

On 23 January 2025, Leo Express commissioned Stadler to install this traction on the FLIRT trains.

Stadler will undertake the work at its plant in Frauenfeld in north-east Switzerland. Czech suppliers will be involved in the fulfilment of the order, too.

Adaptations to hardware and software required
As well as replacing the hardware, the 25kV system will be integrated into the Train Control and Management System (TCMS). The diagnostic system within it will be upgraded and a control element for switching between the two traction systems will be added. A weight assessment, a body strength test and a technical running and brake test will be carried out, as part of the process.

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