Temporary List of Passenger and Official Cars for JZ Passenger Trains for the Year 1955

We present booklet number 241, Yugoslav Railways, GDJŽ no. 3668/54, titled: “Temporary List of Passenger Cars and Official Cars for Passenger and Freight Trains of Standard Gauge and Gauges 1.00, 0.75, 0.76, and 0.60 meters”, effective from February 15, 1955.

On this occasion, due to the extensive material, we are only presenting a list of passenger and official cars for passenger trains that operated on narrow gauge tracks of 1.00, 0.75, 0.76, and 0.60 meters. At the time of issuing this booklet, narrow gauge was still an active participant in passenger transportation within the territory of the former Yugoslavia. Regarding the standard gauge of 1.435 meters, for interested readers, the photo gallery offers tabular data on the total number of passenger cars operating on JŽ tracks. Similarly, through tables, you can view information about car types, series, number of axles, seats, lighting, heating, braking, and other details.

This booklet contains data on fleet numbers, markings—including series, type, ownership, and purpose—of saloon, motor, and inspection cars for standard gauge and narrow gauge (0.60 m, 0.75 m, 0.76 m, and 1.00 m) on all JŽ lines.

From the contents, inventory status for:

ŽTP Beograd

Passenger cars attached to narrow gauge track of 0.76 m (160 cars), and the condition of cars for lines DŽ Požarevac – Petrovac – Ladne Vode (13 cars) and Bijeljina – Bos. Mezgraja – Ugljevik (8 cars) with a track gauge of 0.76 m, and the Kačanik – Vrbeštica line (5 cars) with a track gauge of 0.60 m. The status of official cars for all track gauges totals 74 cars.

ŽTP Zagreb

Passenger cars with a narrow gauge track of 0.76 m for the DŽ Split – Sinj line (25 passenger and 4 official cars) and the Podravska line (33 passenger and 14 official cars), with a track gauge of 1.00 m.

ŽTP Ljubljana

Passenger cars on narrow gauge track 0.76 meters for the DŽ Poljčane – Zreče line (8 passenger and 2 service cars).

ŽTP Sarajevo

Passenger cars for the narrow gauge track of 0.76 m (287 cars), and the condition of cars for the DŽ Bar – Virpazar line (4 cars), gauge width 0.75 m, and the Donja Plavnica – Titograd line (9 cars), gauge width 0.60 m. The total number of official cars for all gauge widths amounts to 145 cars.

ŽTP Novi Sad

Passenger cars on narrow gauge track 0.76 m for the Zrenjanin – Radojevo line (14 passenger and four official cars) and

ŽTP Skopje

Passenger cars with narrow gauge tracks of 0.60 m for the DŽ Gostivar – Ohrid – Struga – Podmole line (32 passenger cars and 17 official cars).

**Inventory status of cars in 1955**

Allow us to include some interesting data. Until 1955, the Sarajevo Railway Traffic Office (ŽTP Sarajevo) had a total of 300 passenger cars (of which 72 had a steel skeleton, the remaining cars had steel underframes with wooden skeletons) of narrow gauge (0.75, 0.76, and 0.60 meters), while all other ŽTPs combined had 298 narrow gauge passenger cars (1.00, 0.76, and 0.60 meters). The condition of passenger cars at ŽTP Sarajevo accounted for over 50% of the total number of all cars within the territory of Yugoslav Railways.

Regarding passenger cars with a track gauge width of 1.435 meters, a total of 2,721 two-axle cars (including 483 with a steel frame) and 519 four-axle cars (including 333 with a steel frame) were in operation across all JŽ lines. Among these, the Sarajevo Passenger Traffic Station (ŽTP Sarajevo) owned 242 two-axle cars (30 of which had a steel frame) and 72 four-axle cars (41 with a steel frame). The passenger car inventory at ŽTP Sarajevo accounted for approximately 9.8% of the total number of all cars within the territory of Yugoslav Railways. Additionally, within the JŽ territory, a further 500 freight cars intended for passenger transport should be included. Regarding motorcars—the ŽTP Sarajevo fleet did not possess any rail gauge length of 1.435 meters on hand (Belgrade 5, Zagreb 4, and Ljubljana 10 units), but six (6) series 801 motor trainsets (formerly 448) operating with a track gauge of 0.76 meters.

Number and Classification of Seats in Passenger Cars

It is interesting to note the total number of seats in passenger cars with a track gauge of 1.435 meters as follows: First class 1,408, second class 22,325, and third class 149,186 seats, of which ŽTP Sarajevo had 97 first class, 2,870 second class, and 13,771 third class seats. It is worth mentioning that 5,772 third-class seats were covered with “soft seats” out of a total of 149,186. ŽTP Sarajevo had no “soft seats” in third class. A soft seat is defined as a foam cushion on a wooden base—bench covered with artificial leather-vinyl with a wooden backrest. The second-class cushion is similar to that in third class, with a soft backrest. In first class, there are special seats (armchairs) with built-in steel springs and foam covered with plush fabric, armrests, a soft backrest, and a headrest.

Similarly, the Sarajevo Railway Terminal (ŽTP Sarajevo) had the following seats on narrow-gauge tracks: First class 204, second class 1,502, and third class 7,299 seats. Overall, for ŽTP Sarajevo, including both standard and narrow-gauge tracks, the total is 25,743 seats, which means that approximately 9 million and 400 thousand passengers could be transported in a year (without standing places).

The total number of passenger cars specially equipped for ski transportation on the 1.435-meter gauge track was five (5), and all were owned by ŽTP Ljubljana.

**Number and Method of Heating Passenger Cars**

Out of a total of 3,240 passenger cars with a 1.435-meter track gauge, only 28 cars had electric Heating voltages of 1500 and 3000 Volts. Cars with electric heating generally operated in international traffic. All other cars had low- or high-pressure steam heating. ŽTP Sarajevo did not have cars with electric heating in stock; instead, the cars were equipped with steam heating. Regarding cars on narrow gauge tracks, most cars had steam heating, while the remaining cars had installed stoves (so-called furnaces or “Queen” stoves) powered by solid fuel, with a smaller number having no heating at all (on the Bar – Virpazar, Plavnica – Titograd, and Kačanik – Vrbeštica routes).

Number and method of lighting for passenger cars

Out of a total of 3,240 passenger cars for standard gauge tracks, 1,013 cars had electric lighting, while all the others were gas-lit. Concerning narrow gauge, out of a total of 598 cars in the JŽ region, 446 cars had electric lighting, thirteen cars had gas lighting, and 32 cars were lit with oil (cars on the Gostivar – Ohrid – Struga – Podmole line). The lighting method for the remaining 107 cars was “not determined.”

Inventory status of salon cars

Regarding passenger cars for train operations on standard gauge tracks of 1.435 meters, the Railway Traffic Office in Belgrade owned one diesel motor car M-03 (without RIC designation) and four 4-axle RIC cars with one compartment equipped with a “single” bed plus three compartments with three beds and a salon section. All cars were used for the needs of the Federal Executive Council, the Executive Council of the Socialist Republic of Serbia, and the leadership of the Yugoslav State Railways (JŽ). The Zagreb Railway Traffic Office had two RIC 4-axle salon cars with a salon compartment and two cabins with “double” beds, as well as three cabins with three beds, for the needs of the Socialist Republic of Croatia. The Ljubljana Railway Traffic Office had one RIC 4-axle salon car with a salon compartment and four cabins with four beds for the needs of the Socialist Republic of Slovenia. The Skopje Railway Traffic Office had one salon car (without RIC designation) with a salon compartment and one cabin with a “single” bed plus two cabins with two beds, for the needs of the Executive Council of the Socialist Republic of North Macedonia. Additionally, Skopje Railway Traffic Office had one narrow gauge salon car (gauge width 0.60 m) on the Gostivar – Ohrid – Struga – Podmole line, with a salon compartment but no sleeping cabins, for the needs of the Skopje Railway Directorate. Sarajevo Railway Traffic Office, with gauge width of 1.435 meters, owned one RIC 4-axle diesel motor car (M-05) with a salon compartment, one cabin with a “single” bed, plus two cabins with two beds, and one RIC 4-axle salon car with a salon compartment, one cabin with a “single” bed, plus three cabins with three beds, for the needs of the Bosnian-Herzegovinian National Assembly. Also, Sarajevo Railway Traffic Office had three salon cars with gauge width 0.76 meters, equipped with salon compartments and two cabins with “double” beds each. Two of these cars were for the needs of the Sarajevo Railway Traffic Office leadership, and one was for the needs of the People’s Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Montenegro.

**The Search and Fate of Narrow-Gauge Salon Cars**

Behind the salon carriage No. 109, an “Alert” order was issued to all external units and repair units for the carriage. It is presumed that these were “loaned” to ŽTP Zagreb or Ljubljana for the construction and operation of the Pioneer Railways (1948/52), during which their interiors were “mercilessly” destroyed and wooden benches installed for seating. In addition to these requested carriages, a number of narrow-gauge salon carriages owned by the Sarajevo Directorate also suffered the fate of “merciless” interior destruction and were repurposed for the needs of the Pioneer Railways’ railway traffic. After the abolition of these railways, many of the “loaned” cars were not returned to their home bases, and it is likely that they were scrapped and melted down at nearby steelworks. All salon carriages, owned by the State/Regional Railways of Bosnia and Herzegovina, formed a Courtly Composition used to transport emperors, kings, princes and princesses, Archdukes and Dukes of the Vienna Court, and the Royal House of the Karađorđević family.

**Inventory Status of Inspection Cars**

As for inspection cars, on tracks with a standard gauge of 1.435 meters, ŽTP Belgrade had one 4-axle car with a salon compartment and one with a “double” bed cabin. ŽTP Ljubljana had one car with a salon compartment, two with “single” cabins, and one with four beds. ŽTP Zagreb had a two-axle car with a salon compartment, one cabin with three beds, and one cabin with four beds. ŽTP Sarajevo had one 4-axle car with a salon compartment, four cabins with “single” beds, and one cabin with two beds. None of these cars bore the RIC label and they served the needs of the management of the mentioned ŽTPs.

Inventory status of motor cars

The inventory status of diesel motor cars with a track gauge of 1.435 meters is as follows: ŽTP Belgrade has five diesel motor cars, including two four-axle cars for passenger transport and three two-axle cars for ambulance testing. ŽTP Zagreb has four diesel motor cars, including one two-axle and three three-axle cars. ŽTP Ljubljana has ten motor cars, three of which are electric, while the rest are diesel-powered, and all are four-axle cars. ŽTP Sarajevo, within its fleet, had six BC diesel motor cars, four-axle, with a track gauge of 0.76 meters. We also list the series of these diesel engines, old designations: 448/100-101 trailer 106; 448/104-105 trailer 102; 448/106/110 trailer 104; 448/108-113 trailer 105; 448/103-111 trailer 103; and 448/109-112 trailer 100. Subsequently, a new numbering was implemented, and instead of series 448, the new designation was 801. We do not have data on sub-series numbers.

The Age Profile of Passenger Cars

The most interesting data pertains to the age of passenger and official cars of all widths on the narrow gauge tracks within the JŽ territory. Out of a total of 826 passenger and official cars: 173 cars were produced between 1885 and 1899; 409 cars from 1900 to 1918; 241 cars from 1919 to 1945; and 3 cars after 1945. According to this data, by 1955, the cars of narrow gauge on the JŽ territory built during the Austro-Hungarian period numbered 582, or approximately 71%, while during the Kingdom of SHS/Yugoslavia period, there were 241 cars, or about 29% of the total number.

The age data of the cars of ŽTP Sarajevo produced during the Austro-Hungarian period consist of 317 cars, or about 71%, while during the Kingdom of SHS/Yugoslavia, there were 127 cars, or approximately 29% of the total number. According to the information from this booklet, there was no production of cars for ŽTP Sarajevo after 1945.