An abroad study trips addressed to the volunteers of the shed become a constant part of the yearly schedule of our association. Apart of being a way of rewarding the most active volunteers, the trips are also a perfect opportunity to exchange the experiences with our colleagues from other countries and make observations for the potential improvements at our own Shed.

Seven members and volunteers of PARE participated in the trip from 28th June to 1st July visiting several railway heritage facilities in Czechia and in the neighbouring Lausitz in Germany.

The first stop in our trip was the railway museum ČD Muzeum Lužná u Rakovníka, where we took part in the meeting of historic DMUs during the Setkání prototypů motorové trakce. Except the unique construction of the displayed motor units, we took a special note of the historic refrigerator cars for transporting beer and the new facilities to store the historic rolling stock. The museum started as a private initiative of the railway enthusiasts and much later was taken over by Czech state railways which further developed the facility.

On the way to the overnight stay in Liberc we took the opportunity to have a ride with the interurban tram line connecting this city with Jablonec nad Nisou. We also visited the local Muesum of Technology where a part of the exhibition was devoted to the city transport. Next, we took a trip to Zittau. And interesting part of this trip was a short section of the route crossing the territory of Poland on the line № 346 which is isolated from the rest of the PKP network. The cross-border trip was much easier thanks to the EuroNysa tickets issued by the ZVON transportation association.

Our last stop was the Zittau Narrow-gauge Railway which connects Zittau with the towns in Lausitz mountains: Oybin and Jonsdorf. It is simultaneously a heritage railway and an everyday commuter railway. Nearly for the whole year, the trains are pulled by steam engines and most of the rolling stock is kept in the historic livery. For us it was a perfect example of how a historic railway should be preserved.