Which railway lines on the border with Ukraine will be restored?

The capacity of routes between Poland and Ukraine is limited. What are the plans to increase transportation capabilities?

Since the beginning of the war, the railway has played an extremely important role, initially in the mass evacuation of civilians, and then in the delivery of goods, reports the railway portal Railway Supply, citing nakolei.

Polish parliament member Paulina Matisiak has submitted an interpellation to the Ministry of Infrastructure, highlighting that Poland has several active railway lines on the Polish-Ukrainian border, but the train schedules often require lengthy maneuvers at stations due to the need to change the direction of trains.

Railway screws, alloy bolts, fishbolts, connecting bolts for railroad ties, turnout screws

Some of these maneuvers would not be necessary if there were multiple active cross-over tracks between individual lines, noted Deputy Matisiak.

Paulina Matisiak asked about the plans of Polish Railways (PKP Polskie Linie Kolejowe) regarding the restoration of specific railway lines on the border with Ukraine.

1. Will PKP PLK SA restore the connection between railway lines No. 564 and No. 83 to eliminate the time-consuming maneuvers of changing the direction of freight trains at Zawada station?
2. Will PKP PLK SA restore the 10-kilometer section of railway line No. 83 from Zamość Bortatychy goods station to Jarosławiec station, which will allow avoiding the passage of freight trains through the center of Zamość, moving from Zawada towards Hrubieszów?
3. Will PKP PLK SA restore the connection between Ploske Zamoście and Kolonia to enable direct travel of PKP Intercity trains from Hrubieszów and Zamość towards Rejowiec, bypassing time-consuming stops for changing the direction of travel at Zawada station?
4. Is there any plan for the construction of a new connection between railway lines No. 65 Zvyrzhynets – Stalova Volya and No. 69 Rejowiec – Zamość to avoid stops for changing the direction of travel at Zvyrzhynets station for trains traveling from Lublin via Stalova Volya towards Grebenne and the future direction towards Lviv?
5. Is there any plan to restore the connection No. 616 Kornie – Elinka, which connects line No. 69 with line No. 101 in Grebenne, enabling direct trips from the side of Rzeszów through Lubaczów towards Rawa Ruska?
6. Is there any plan to restore the 9-kilometer section of the railway line from Grebenne to the former Poddomce station on the railway line towards Sokal in Ukraine to improve the connection with this country?

Vice Minister of Infrastructure, Rafał Weber, has announced that currently, the restoration of the connection between Ploske Zamoście and Kolonia is planned. This will allow for a transition from railway line No. 69 Rejowiec – Grebenne to railway line No. 72 Zawada – Hrubieszów Miasto, bypassing Zawada station.

Track maintenance tools: Rail drilling machine

The construction of this railway line is included in the project called “Works on railway lines 69 and 72 on the Rejowiec – Zawada – Zamość Shopinek section, including the construction of the connection bypassing Zawada station.” The project is being implemented as part of the Kolej+ program, which aims to strengthen the local and regional railway infrastructure by 2029, according to Vice Minister Rafał Weber.

According to the Ministry’s representative, the construction of this railway line will reduce travel time for PKP Intercity trains from Hrubieszów and Zamość to Lublin or Warsaw by nearly 30 minutes.

The remaining sections of railway lines and connections mentioned in the interpellation are currently not included in the investment plans of PKP PLK S.A.

The company has not conducted an analysis regarding the execution of works on the mentioned sections. Furthermore, the infrastructure management has not received any applications from interested parties in the railway transport sector with investment proposals for the remaining sections of railway lines and connections mentioned in the interpellation, added Rafał Weber.

Railway news you might have missed:

Track maintenance tools: Hydraulic rail straightener GR-12