Czechia: 20 CityElefant trains break down at once, Prague commuter trains packed to the brim

On Tuesday, September 8, passengers on commuter trains to and from Prague found themselves squeezed into unusually crowded carriages. This time, the complaints weren't just anecdotal — the problem was officially acknowledged by České dráhy, the company contracted by Prague and the Central Bohemian Region to run rail services in and around the capital.

On social media, the carrier apologized for the drop in travel comfort, admitting a shortage of CityElefant electric train units that normally run on the suburban lines connecting Prague to the surrounding region. The company apologized to passengers specifically over "difficulties on suburban lines around Prague." Coupled train sets, which offer more seating and standing room, currently cannot be deployed — meaning passengers used to boarding a pair of linked carriages for the same ticket price now have to squeeze into a single unit, effectively a train half its usual length.

The problem could drag on

Waiting for the next train in hopes of a more comfortable ride won't necessarily help — and even postponing your trip by a day or two offers no guarantee: the national carrier says it cannot predict when the issue will be resolved.

"Due to the large number of CityElefant units taken out of service, some trains are running shortened — and these restrictions may continue over the coming days," the company said on X. According to the carrier, the shortage of rolling stock stems not only from technical faults but also from damage caused by emergency incidents, as well as the ongoing installation of the ETCS safety system. "We're doing everything we can to get the units back into service as soon as possible," České dráhy said, though without giving passengers a concrete timeline or much reassurance.

About twenty trains broke down at once

Central Bohemian Region Governor Petra Pecková (STAN) hasn't been able to offer much comfort either, though she confirmed that the region, as the client commissioning public transport services, is in talks with the carrier. For now, the region can do little more than apologize alongside the operator.

Pecková offered a more specific explanation for what happened: according to her, it was breakdowns, on a mass scale, that knocked the units out of service. "Around 20 CityElefant units belonging to carrier České dráhy were hit by various malfunctions today, and the causes are currently being investigated," the governor said, adding that the region's public transport advisor, Petr Borecký, is working to resolve the situation quickly.

Borecký has so far only confirmed the problem on Facebook, assuring the public that work is underway to fix it. "We apologize — this is a completely unforeseen and exceptional situation," he wrote, confirming that various malfunctions had affected two dozen CityElefant units.

Source: prazsky.denik.cz