Rail transport in Montenegro is operated by four separate companies, which independently handle railway infrastructure, passenger transport, cargo transport and maintenance of the rolling stock. The four companies were a part of public company ''Railways of Montenegro'' ( Montenegrin: Željeznica Crne Gore / Жељезница Црне Горе (ŽCG)) until it was split up in 2008. Montenegro is a member of the International Union of Railways (UIC). The

UIC Country Code The UIC Country Code is a two digit-number identifying countries in which members of the International Union of Railways (UIC) are active. The UIC has issued numbering systems for rolling stock ( UIC wagon numbers) and stations that include the cou ...

for Montenegro is 62.

Railway Infrastructure of Montenegro

Railway Infrastructure of Montenegro ( Montenegrin: Жељезничка Инфраструктура Црне Горе / Željeznička Infrastruktura Crne Gore (ŽICG)) is a joint-stock company that handles operation and maintenance of the railway infrastructure in Montenegro.

History

The first railway line within the territory which today belongs to Montenegro was a

narrow-gauge A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structu ...

() railway line Gabela - Zelenika, which opened in 1901. This railway line was built by

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

, which governed the territory of

Boka Kotorska The Bay of Kotor ( Montenegrin and Serbian: , Italian: ), also known as the Boka, is a winding bay of the Adriatic Sea in southwestern Montenegro and the region of Montenegro concentrated around the bay. It is also the southernmost part of the hi ...

at the time. Narrow-Gauge-Railway_Bar-Virpazar_Station-Bar

However, the works on the first Montenegrin railway, the Bar - Virpazar line, begun in 1905. This was a narrow-gauge () railway line, 43,3 km long, which opened in 1908. The extension of this line from Virpazar to Cetinje was planned, but never came through, due to lack of funding, and the beginning of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. This historic mountain railway line overcame a rise of 670m over an 18 km run on the Sutorman mountain, with a maximum

grade Grade most commonly refers to: * Grade (education), a measurement of a student's performance * Grade, the number of the year a student has reached in a given educational stage * Grade (slope), the steepness of a slope Grade or grading may also ref ...

of 40‰. Despite the steep gradient, the railway was not using rack technology, due to the innovative route design by

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

engineers. The operating speeds on the line were 18 km/h for passenger transport, and 12 km/h for freight movement. In 2008, on the 100th anniversary of the line opening, and at the same time the anniversary of Montenegrin railways as a whole, it was planned to transfer the steam locomotive ''

Lovćen Lovćen ( cyrl, Ловћен, ) is a mountain and national park in southwestern Montenegro. It is the inspiration behind the names ''Montenegro'' and ''Crna Gora'', both of which mean "Black Mountain" and refer to the appearance of Mount Lov� ...

'' from Podgorica Rail Station to Virpazar. This locomotive, which operated on the line, should become a part of a ''Montenegrin railway museum'' in Virpazar, which, due to lack of funds, never came through. The railway network in Montenegro expanded during the period of

Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 ...

. In 1927, the

Podgorica Podgorica (Cyrillic: Подгорица, ; lit. 'under the hill') is the capital and largest city of Montenegro. The city was formerly known as Titograd (Cyrillic: Титоград, ) between 1946 and 1992—in the period that Montenegro form ...

- Plavnica line () was opened, followed by Bileća -

Nikšić Nikšić ( cnr, Никшић, italic=no, sr-cyrl, Никшић, italic=no; ), is the second largest city in Montenegro, with a total population of 56,970 located in the west of the country, in the centre of the spacious Nikšić field at the foot ...

line in 1938. At that time, the railway network of Montenegro measured 143 km in length, with

narrow gauge A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structu ...

as a most common standard. However, the railway network was not integrated, and , and were present, additionally complicating the network operations.

Multimodal transport Multimodal transport (also known as combined transport) is the transportation of goods under a single contract, but performed with at least two different modes of transport; the carrier is liable (in a legal sense) for the entire carriage, even th ...

was used for freight transport between Bar and Podgorica, as goods were transported by rail from Bar to Virpazar, then ferried across the

Skadar Lake Lake Skadar ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, Скадарско језеро, Skadarsko jezero, ; sq, Liqeni i Shkodrës, ) also called Lake Scutari, Lake Shkodër and Lake Shkodra lies on the border of Albania and Montenegro, and is the largest lake in Southern ...

to Plavnica, followed by rail transport to Podgorica once again. Thus, it is fair to say that railway network in Montenegro was underdeveloped and unorganized prior to

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. Following the World War 2, the railway line Podgorica - Nikšić was completed (1948), with gauge. The first real advance towards modernisation of railway network was the start of construction of the Montenegrin section of Belgrade-Bar railway. The first section from Bar to Podgorica was completed in 1959, and this is the first section of standard gauge railway in Montenegro. At the same time,

''Podgorica - Plavnica'' and ''Bar - Virpazar'' lines were decommissioned. In 1965, the ''Podgorica - Nikšić'' corridor was upgraded to standard gauge, thus standardizing the entire connection from Bar to Nikšić via Podgorica. The section from Nikšić to Bileća was decommissioned at the time, as well as the Gabela - Zelenika line. The Montenegrin section of colossal Belgrade-Bar railway project (from Bar to Vrbnica, border with

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungar ...

) was completed in 1976, connecting Bar and Podgorica with the northern Montenegro, Serbia, and European rail network. At that time, the length of Montenegrin railway network was 225 km, with transition to standard gauge complete. The latest addition to the Montenegrin railways was Podgorica–Shkodër line, which opened in 1986. This was a freight-only line since its opening. In 2012, Podgorica-Niksic railway was opened for passenger traffic after twenty years of absence. The line was modernised and electrified. As of 2019, ZICG managed to modernise the northern part of the line the Belgrade-Bar railway between Bijelo Polje and Trebesice, and inside the Sozina tunnel.

Overview

The total network is 250 kilometres long and is ( standard gauge) for its entire length, with 225 of them electrified at 25 kV, 50 Hz AC. Almost 58 km of lines are situated in 121 tunnels. There are also 120 bridges, 9 galleries and 440 culverts. The network consists of three railway lines that converge in Podgorica, making it a junction of Montenegrin X-shaped rail network. * Belgrade-Bar railway is the backbone of the Montenegrin railway system. It opened in 1976, and then was a state-of-the art railway, with features such as Mala Rijeka viaduct (highest railway viaduct in Europe) and the 6.2 km long Sozina tunnel. About one-third of the Montenegrin part of the railway is in a tunnel or on a viaduct. It is the first railway corridor in Montenegro that was fully electrified. The railway has suffered from chronic underfunding in the 1990s, resulting in it deteriorating and becoming unsafe. This culminated in the 2006 Bioče train disaster, when a passenger train derailed, killing 47 passengers. Efforts are being made to thoroughly reconstruct this railway, with northern section of the railway already being completely overhauled. *The Nikšić-Podgorica railway (56,6 km long) was built in 1948 as narrow gauge railway, and upgraded to normal gauge in 1965. Since 1992, it has been used solely for

freight Cargo consists of bulk goods conveyed by water, air, or land. In economics, freight is cargo that is transported at a freight rate for commercial gain. ''Cargo'' was originally a shipload but now covers all types of freight, including tran ...

traffic, particularly

bauxite Bauxite is a sedimentary rock with a relatively high aluminium content. It is the world's main source of aluminium and gallium. Bauxite consists mostly of the aluminium minerals gibbsite (Al(OH)3), boehmite (γ-AlO(OH)) and diaspore (α-AlO ...

from the Nikšić mine to the Podgorica Aluminium Plant, with maximum speed on the railway reduced to 30 km/h. The railway was thoroughly reconstructed and electrified in 2006-2012 period, with passenger service reintroduced. Operating speeds on this railway are now in - range. *The

Podgorica–Shkodër railway The Podgorica–Shkodër railway is a railway connecting Albania and Montenegro, used for freight-purposes only. It is Albania's only international rail link. Although initially built between 1984–1985, it fell into disuse in 1991 and later ...

, which extends to

Tirana Tirana ( , ; aln, Tirona) is the capital and largest city of Albania. It is located in the centre of the country, enclosed by mountains and hills with Dajti rising to the east and a slight valley to the northwest overlooking the Adriatic Sea ...

, has been used exclusively for freight traffic since its opening. Parts in Albania were damaged in 1997, but the connection was restored in 2002. There are plans to reconstruct the railway and introduce passenger traffic, as it is important for interests of both

Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = M ...

and

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

Rail links with adjacent countries

Montenegro only has passenger railway links with

. The link with

is only in use for freight. There are currently no railway connections with

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...

and

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

since the breakup of Yugoslavia.

Railway transport of Montenegro

Railway transport of Montenegro ( Montenegrin: Жељезнички превоз Црне Горе / Željeznički prevoz Crne Gore (ŽPCG)) is a joint-stock company that handles passenger transport within Montenegro, as well as operation of the Montenegrin

rolling stock The term rolling stock in the rail transport industry refers to railway vehicles, including both powered and unpowered vehicles: for example, locomotives, freight and passenger cars (or coaches), and non-revenue cars. Passenger vehicles can ...

. File:ZCG461 Virpazar.jpg, Former JŽ class 461 passing through Virpazar on the Belgrade-Bar line. File:01.10.13 Bar 6111.001 (10101137154).jpg,

CAF Civity The CAF Civity is a platform of regional passenger trains which is manufactured by Spanish rolling stock manufacturer Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles. Available as both diesel, electric and battery-electric multiple unit, the ''Civ ...

class 6111 EMU at Bar station. File:01.10.13 Podgorica 6111.101 & 461.040 (10101220063).jpg, New

next to passenger train hauled by older former JŽ class 461. File:ZCG 412-050 Podgorica.jpg, ŽS series 412/416 EMU of ŽPCG in new livery in Podgorica station.

Montecargo

Montecargo ( Montenegrin: Montecargo) is a company that handles freight transport within Montenegro, as well as operation of the Montenegrin

goods wagons Goods wagons or freight wagons (North America: freight cars), also known as goods carriages, goods trucks, freight carriages or freight trucks, are unpowered railway vehicles that are used for the transportation of cargo. A variety of wagon type ...

and freight locomotives. Rolling stock of Montecargo consists of 17 locomotives (15 active) and 713 freight wagons: * 8 locomotives of class JŽ 461 * 3 locomotives of class JŽ 661 * 4 locomotives of class JŽ 644 * 2 locomotives of class JŽ 744 (none of them is active)

Rolling stock maintenance

Rolling stock maintenance ( Montenegrin: Održavanje željezničkih voznih sredstava / Одржавање жељезничких возних средстава (OŽVS)) is a joint-stock company that handles maintenance of the Montenegrin passenger and freight rolling stock. It was a part of ''Railway transport of Montenegro'' company, but was split into separate company in 2011. Otvaranje_barske_pruge_28_maj_1976

Railways of Montenegro in fiction

James Bond The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...

travels on the railways of Montenegro in '' Casino Royale''. The actual train seen in the movie is the

Pendolino Pendolino (from Italian ''pendolo'' "pendulum", and ''-ino,'' a diminutive suffix) is an Italian family of tilting trains used in Italy, Spain, Germany, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Finland, Russia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, the UK, the US, ...

tilting train A tilting train is a train that has a mechanism enabling increased speed on regular rail tracks. As a train (or other vehicle) rounds a curve at speed, objects inside the train experience centrifugal force. This can cause packages to slide ab ...

of Czech Railways.

Preservation

Josip Broz Tito's Blue Train used the JŽ class 11, JŽ D66/761 (

DB Class V 200 DB Class V 200 (also known as Class 220) was the first series production diesel-hydraulic express locomotive of the German Deutsche Bundesbahn and – as Am 4/4 – of the SBB-CFF-FFS in Switzerland. History DB Service Five prototypes of t ...

based), and later JŽ class 666 (EMD JT22CW-2) locomotives. It is now operated on the Bar - Belgrade line as a tourist attraction.