New locomotives for ČD Cargo might lead to further international expansion

The Czech state-owned rail freight operator ČD Cargo will receive a batch of Traxx 3MS locomotives that might help the company in its international expansion. Some of them might, in fact, be deployed “to enter other markets, such as Italy and the Benelux”, as international affairs specialist at the Czech company Petr Jindra pointed out.

The original order for the locomotives was placed by ČD Cargo in 2018 with rolling stock manufacturer Bombardier Transportation. Initially, the order was for 10 Traxx 3MS with the option of increasing the number to up to 50. Bombardier Transportation was then bought by the French company Alstom, which picked up the contract. The Czech company has now submitted an order for the last 11 locomotives of the 50 included in the deal, which should be delivered by 2026.

Moreover, ČD Cargo placed an additional order for 10 more Traxx 3MS locomotives (for a total of 60) which will be used by the the company’s Austrian branch. “There is a bigger volume of transports to Italy for which we would like to use our branch office in Austria which thus will utilize these locomotives, among others”, Jindra added. However, this possible expansion is still in its embryonic stage, as Jindra specified that “nothing more concrete has been revealed yet.”