German

SLOVENE RAILWAYS

Kolodvorska 11
SI-1506 Ljubljana
Slovenia

Tel. + 386 61 291 21 00
Fax + 386 61 133 41 84

Slovenske zeleznice (Slovene Railways) is a joint-stock company operating a varied, modern and environmentally friendly transport network. Railways have a long tradition in Slovenia: two years ago we celebrated the 150th anniversary of the arrival of the first train in Slovenia; the first railway connection between Vienna and the Adriatic across the territory of Slovenia was built in 1857.

Slovenske zeleznice has for a number of decades been an important part of this transport system. The medium and long term development aims of Slovenia’s railway infrastructure are based on transport development strategies which match the requirements of the economy and the strategic goals of European transport policy. Slovenske zeleznice’s business strategy adheres strictly to European Union guidelines.

The first step towards the modernisation of Slovenia’s railway infrastructure is the renovation of existing lines at the highest possible technical level. This will contribute to even greater safety and reliability and to the rationalisation of operations. Part of the development strategy of European railway infrastructure is the construction of new high-speed lines. Priority in the modernisation of Slovenia’s railway infrastructure is given to projects relating to European Transport Corridors 5 and 10, which run across Slovenia from west to east and from north to south respectively. A direct railway connection with Hungary and the construction of a second track on the Koper-Divaca line will mean a significant increase in transport capacity. Slovenske zeleznice’s efforts towards achieving the quality of services and operations offered by western European railways are already bearing fruit. This is confirmed by the ISO 9001 certificate of quality.

Advantages of Slovenske zeleznice’s Transport Services:

• Sufficient number of goods wagons for the transport of all types of freight-mixed freight; motor cars and other motor vehicles; containers; animals; timber; powder, bulk and liquid freight; hazardous substances, etc.; Slovenske zeleznice can also adapt to the special wishes and needs of clients;
• Door-to-door freight transport with all necessary logistical support;
• Combined transport;
• Container terminals in major towns (Ljubljana, Koper, Maribor, Celje);

Slovenske zeleznice’s wide range of high-quality services is supported by a modern information system which allows us to establish the location of any goods wagon or consignment at any given moment. The system is also connected to the Hermes computer network, which enables us to exchange information with the railway networks of other countries.

One important component of Slovenske zeleznice’s services is combined transport-the transport of lorries, semi-trailers, interchangeable containers by train-which is supported by modern international railway terminals in Ljubljana, Maribor, Celje, and at the Port of Koper. The advantages of such a system are time-saving, rationalisation of the overall transport system, lower road use, and reduced pollution of the environment.

Slovenske zeleznice is also the primary transport operator between the Port of Koper, one of Europe’s most important ports, and the other countries of Europe. The Port of Koper, and thus the Adriatic, can be reached in less than a day from the most important European centres. Indirectly, this means the shortest link between central and western Europe to the countries of the Mediterranean and onwards via the Suez Canal to the Middle East, Far East, and Oceania.

The “Slovene Transport Route” is thus 7 to 10 days shorter than the route to the northern European ports, which means an important saving in transport costs and valuable time.

As regards international passenger transport, the Slovenske zeleznice network offers connections to all major European cities with its modern Intercity and Eurocity trains. One of our strategic orientations in domestic transport is the development of city transport which integrates different means of transport (a good example of this is Karlsruhe).

Frequency, safety, shorter journey times, modern passenger coaches, and an improvement in customer relations are our goals for the achievement of greater quality in passenger transport. By achieving them Slovenske zeleznice hopes to retain its current passengers and acquire as many new ones as possible.

Slovenske zeleznice has representative offices in Vienna, Milan and Budapest, and shares representative offices with the Port of Koper in Munich and Prague.

Basic data on Slovenske zeleznice

• Total length of track: 1201 km
• Number of locomotives: 218
• Number of goods wagons: 4000
• Number of net ton kilometres in 1997: 3 billion
• Quantity of freight carried: 14.5 million tons