Electrification of the Kadaň - Karlovy Vary Line

The electrification between Kadaň and Karlovy Vary has been inaugurated after tape has been cut at the platform 1 of Kadaň station on May 26, 2006. It was the last 48 km long not electrified section of the main line along the Krušné hory Moutains. The first electric powered train in the whole section was the No. 36606 special protocol train with No. 364.054 locomotive from Plzeň depot with salon, dining, one 1st class and two 2nd class coaches - but the first section when an electric locomotive (No. 242.207) went by it own power was the section Karlovy Vary - Vojkovice already on December 9, 2005. The line between Karlovy Vary and Kadaň is an important connection between the coal mining region at Sokolov and industrial and energetic centers in Kadaň and Chomutov regions. The most important transport commodity of this line is energetic coal. This was the reason for electrifying of the lines to Chomutov and Kadaň respectively Sokolov and later Karlovy Vary. The line has been face-lifted - the line superstructure, station platforms, and road crossing have been restored to increase the maximum speed to 80 km/h (70 km/h in original curves) for conventional trains and 100 km/h for vehicles with tilting car bodies. The extent of modernization was different in particular station and section - the widest structural changes have been carried out at Perštejn and Stráž nad Ohří stations.