The Wrocław–Poznań railway is a Polish

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

line, that connects southern Poland and

Wrocław Wrocław (; german: Breslau, or . ; Silesian German: ''Brassel'') is a city in southwestern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the River Oder in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Europe, rou ...

with

Leszno Leszno (german: Lissa, 1800–1918 ''Lissa in Posen'') is a historic city in western Poland, within the Greater Poland Voivodeship. It is the seventh-largest city in the province with an estimated population of 62,200, as of 2021. Previously, it ...

Poznań Poznań () is a city on the River Warta in west-central Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business centre, and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint John ...

and further to

Szczecin Szczecin (, , german: Stettin ; sv, Stettin ; Latin: ''Sedinum'' or ''Stetinum'') is the capital and largest city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Located near the Baltic Sea and the German border, it is a major s ...

. The railway is part of European TEN-T route E59 from Scandinavia to Vienna, Budapest and Prague.

Opening

In 1853 a decision was made to build a railway line connecting Wrocław with Poznań. It obtained the concession for the construction

Upper Silesian Railway The Upper Silesian Railway (german: Oberschlesische Eisenbahn, OSE, pl, Kolej Górnośląska) was one of the earliest railways in Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with sma ...

(Oberschlesische Eisenbahn Gesellschaft), and construction started in Leszno, in three directions: to Wrocław, Poznań and Głogów. A prototype steam locomotive entered Leszno station from Rawicz on 27 September 1856, and the first regular train service started on 27 October 1856. The ceremonial opening of the line, involving city authorities and residents, took place 29 October 1856.

History

In the interwar period, Leszno station served as a border control station. On the railway the train service was limited to 2 passenger trains and express train 801/802 between Wroclaw and Gdańsk. From Poznan, two passenger trains reached Rawicz. Between Leszno and Wrocław there were 2 pairs of international passenger trains (without stopping in Lasocice, border control station in Leszno), and 3 pairs of trains to the border at Lasocice from Leszno. Here the border was on the line of today's border of Greater Poland Voivodeship and

Lower Silesian Voivodeship Lower Silesian Voivodeship, or Lower Silesia Province, in southwestern Poland, is one of the 16 voivodeships (provinces) into which Poland is divided. The voivodeship was created on 1 January 1999 out of the former Wrocław, Legnica, Wałbrz ...

Electrification

Electrification of the lines around Leszno took place in three stages: *31 May 1969: - Poznań - Puszczykowko *20 December 1969: Puszczykowko - Leszno *22 April 1970: Leszno - Wrocław

Modernisation

Since 2010

PKP PLK PKP Polskie Linie Kolejowe S.A. is the Polish railway infrastructure manager, responsible for maintenance of rail tracks, conducting the trains across the country, scheduling train timetables, and management of railway land. The company was found ...

has led the modernisation of railway line E59 between Wrocław and Poznań. The project is co-financed by the European Union. As a result of the works, the line speed will be increased up to 160 km/h and thereby travel time on the section between Wrocław and Poznań will be 75 minutes (for the fastest trains). In addition, the stations Leszno and Poznań will be the two local traffic control centres. Completion of the work was planned for 2014, but is expected to last until 2020. Along with modernising the tracks, stations are being improved and sound barriers are being built.

Usage

The line is used by the following service(s):

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wroclaw-Poznan railway Railway lines in Poland Railway lines opened in 1856