SLOVAKIA: ZSSK has launched an ETCS tender to equip 10 Class 757 diesel locomotives with Level 2 Baseline 4 technology, extending modern train protection to non-electrified passenger routes.

ZSSK Class 757 locomotive 757 006 with a Gemeran passenger train at Košice station
ZSSK locomotive 757 006 with Gemeran train RR914 at Košice station. Illustrative image; it does not show the ETCS installation. Photo: Phil Richards, CC BY-SA 2.0

ZSSK ETCS tender sets a 36-month programme

Železničná spoločnosť Slovensko (ZSSK) estimates the contract at €9.32 million excluding VAT. The final price will be established after bids are evaluated, with the lowest total price among compliant offers serving as the main award criterion.

The Slovak Public Procurement Office register gives a precise estimated value of €9,321,750 and lists the competition as active. Offers are due by 3 September 2026, while ZSSK expects delivery, installation and approval to take 36 months.

The selected contractor must supply the onboard equipment, install it and secure authorisation for operation. The notice specifies ETCS Level 2 Baseline 4, also identified as ETCS BL4-ATO, and requires compliance with applicable TSI, EN and STN standards. Locomotives will be handed over for installation and returned to ZSSK at its Bratislava depot.

Funding is expected to combine the Slovakia Programme, other European schemes, the state budget and ZSSK’s own resources. The exact mix will depend on the availability and approval of individual funding sources.

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ETCS reaches diesel-operated passenger routes

Class 757 diesel-electric locomotives were created through extensive reconstruction of older Class 750 vehicles. They work on non-electrified lines and routes that combine electrified and non-electrified sections, including Ponitran express services between Bratislava-Nové Mesto and Prievidza and Gemeran trains between Zvolen and Košice.

Installing ETCS on these locomotives would therefore extend modern train protection beyond Slovakia’s principal electrified corridors. ZSSK expects the upgrade to improve safety on regional and long-distance services operated with diesel traction.

The procurement forms part of Slovakia’s Action Plan for Increasing Railway Transport Safety, approved in December 2025. The programme also covers rolling-stock and infrastructure upgrades, signalling, communications and staff training.

ZSSK is separately introducing driver-cab cameras, preparing 164 BlackBox onboard recording systems and tendering for 12 driving simulators. Once all planned projects are completed, the operator expects to have 178 locomotives and trainsets equipped with ETCS.

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