Do you see all these acronyms on the picture ? OS, R, EC… What do they mean ?
We decided to make some researches about them in order to have a better comprehension. So let’s begin with the beginning. The two main companies which operate in Slovakia are Železničná Spoločnost’ SlovensKo (aka ŽSSK) and RegioJet (aka RJ).
The first one, ŽSSK company is owned by the Slovak Republic and operates in the majority of Slovakia with approximately 700 stops and train stations in the country. However, RJ is a Czech company and provides trains between the larger cities in Czech Republic and Slovakia. The difference between these companies is that ŽSSK’s trains depart from a Slovak town instead of RJ’s trains which link two foreign stations through Slovak cities.
Both of these companies have EuroCity (aka EC) and Osobný vlak (aka OS) trains. EC trains link the big cities as Praha, Warsaw, Budapest, Vienna, Bratislava, Kosiče and much more… The OS trains link smaller villages to larger cities and stop at every train station.
ŽSSK company has other trains as :
- InterCity (aka IC) which is the fastest connection from the East (from Bratislava) to the West (to Kosiče) of Slovakia
- Rýchlik (aka R) which connects the main towns and cities frequently and quickly
- Regionálny Rýchlik (aka RR) which is similar to R’s trains but uses shorter routes
- Regionálny Express (aka REX) which links many regional train stations but not all that’s why it’s faster than regional trains (OS’s trains).
Now you won’t be lost in front of the train’s billboards !
By Manon Rosset
Bibliography : https://rail.cc/en/train-type/slovakia/sk https://www.zssk.sk/en/about-us/profil-en/ https://www.regiojet.com/about-us/our-story/ Pictures : Mathilde Petiteau https://www.ecosia.org/images?q=train+slovakia#id=_
Žilina viewed by Ma² 