In the Heart of the Country,

Brasov Rail Region "Throbs" 
in the Rhythm of the Train Wheels

Quick steps through a rich history

Brasov Rail Region has such a rich history that is quite difficult to make reference to an event without "omitting " others. Yet, let's start with the beginning! On the area of the current Brasov Rail Region, the first railway section, having a length of 108 km, has been built in year 1871; it links the towns Alba Iulia and Targu Mures. The rest of the network, up to 2,805 km, as it has nowadays, has been built along the time, up to year 1943, inclusive. Presently, the railway lines held by Brasov Rail Region are extended on six district territory: Brasov, Sibiu, Alba, Mures, Harghita and Covasna.
On June 1, the current year, there have been celebrated 130 years since the entrance of the first passengers train in Brasov Railway Station, event occasioned by the inauguration, on June 1, 1873, of Sighisoara - Brasov railway, therefore linking, with the help of the iron way, the center of Europe to this wonderful touring area. The building of the old railway station of the town still exists nowadays, it is situated on the street Hasmasului and has another destination. The current station is built at the end of the Second World War, presently waiting for its new status - the one of eurostation.
Two of the objectives making the fame of this rail region are the impressing Caracau Viaduct and Teliu Tunnel (the longest tunnel from the country - 4.370 km), our magazine already wrote about them previously. Caracau Viaduct, situated on Ciceu - Adjud section , is one of the most important railway works of art from the country, the image being used quite often in order to illustrate the greatness of the Romanian railway constructors. On their turn, Teliu Tunnel, located on Harman - Intorsura Buzaului, has been built between years 1924 - 1931, by a German company, their name being related to a series of legends.
And if we remain at the category of "the best of the best", Predeal Station takes "the highest" place among the Romanian railway stations, being situated at 1.040 m from the level of the sea. Brasov Rail Region is famous for the very picturesque areas that the iron way crosses, very appreciated by the tourists, genuine and foreigners, which arrive here by train in order to visit the towns Predeal, Brasov, Sibiu or Baile Sovata or in order to enjoy various attractions that this region offers: the multitude of touring routes from Bucegi Mountains, the exceptional historical monuments, as well as the Black Church, Bran Castle, the old town of Sighisoara or the Brukenthal Museum, from Sibiu. And the railway tourism seems to flourish here as days go by, still on June 1, the current year being reopened on this purpose (for tourists) the narrow gauge line Tagu Mures - Band.
But there is so much to say…that, we better give the floor to the director of the rail region, who helped us to make a review of what means Brasov Rail Region.

An interview for you

We can consider Mr. Ion Cutieru, the rail region director from Brasov, an old collaborator of the magazine Railway Journal, but he is, in the same time one of the few left from the "old guard" of the railway employees. Because for over 30 years he is "part" of the Romanian railway system, which he passionately served, on each position he was assigned to.
We asked Mr. Ion Cutieru what he thinks about the status of the Romanian railway employee and here is what he answered to us: " A railway employee who respects himself and who wants to maintain the standard and the professional status at a high level can only love his handicraft and to permanently dedicate himself together with the people from the Railways.
During my carrier, I have experienced a few stages: I have started from a low level and I had the chance to know a series of devoted professionals, with whom we can really be proud of.
In this moment, many years after the revolution, even if certain things have degraded, at the Railways that trace of discipline necessary to develop an activity which imply a lot of responsibilities, even more a certain strictness, rigor, exactitude, order and, as I was telling you, attachment to their profession.
I met special people at Brasov Rail Region, professionals in the true meaning of the word, because they are raised at a genuine railway school, they are people next to whom you are not ashamed to "parade", who will and are able to solve the problems, from all points of view. Moreover, I met an appropriate working atmosphere: it is the merit of our forerunners who knew to keep alive this spirit of discipline that is so necessary to meet the exigencies."
According to his opinion, the activity unfolded within CFR SA is quite important, very difficult, especially in the current conditions: "The infrastructure is a basic element in the context of CFR activity development! I do not say that the railway transport operator, for freight or for passengers, should be neglected, yet, for the time being, I have the conviction that, as long as we have the infrastructure tuned up, appropriately maintained, we will have a very good railway activity. On the other hand, the aspect of the railway stations, the spaces where the passengers - transport beneficiary - get in touch with us, in fact, the mirror of the state of things of this sector, represent the business card of the railways. That is why, we should continue to offer a more civilized image, more modern and as attractive as possible".
Very important in a managing position is the way in which the inter-human relationship between the boss and the subordinate. There can be said that this type of relationship has an essential role the well development of an undertaking. We would prefer that, for the beginning to ask Mr. director to tell us his opinion about his subordinates, the railway employees from Brasov Railway Region. "The railway employees from our rail region are people that I had to deal with in various stages, directly, in the basic sub-units, as well as at the analysis of safety traffic, on the occasion of the audience, of the debate of certain aspects, from the organizational ones, supplying, technical, current problems of the activity, up to the ones related to the "soul". And, as I have already mentioned, they are good professionals. True railway employees!"
Other questions addressed to Mr. director have been normally asked, although the answers have been received more syncoped, due to the various interruptions occurred, because the activity in the rail region is continue, demanding and an interview taken for our magazine can not be a reason to interrupt it.
Railway Journal: Which are the main features of Brasov rail Region?
Ion Cutieru: The Rail Region has three important main sections - with simple lines, double or electrified and also a lot of works of art -, which make the link between the four cardinal points of the country. We have a railway network quite tuned up, three traffic regulators, with electrodynamics centralized equipment.
Presently, we develop a campaign for the surveillance of the technical state of the infrastructure, in order to bring these technical parameters to be appropriate for the increase of the transport volume. Yet, as all over the world, for us, the railway men, the activity from the safety traffic field is primal.
R.J.: How do the rehabilitation works at the Corridor IV affect the activity of the rail region that you are managing?
I.C.: We have to aim a few objectives, which are included in the vast modernization program for the European railway corridors, among which there is also CED Brasov. In five important towns - Brasov, Alba Iulia, Fagaras, Sighisoara and Sibiu the railway stations will be also modernized and brought to the parameters of eurostations.
R.J.: I know that on the area of the rail region there is a railway museum, in Sibiu, and the railway men from Brasov also develop other "cultural" activities…
I.C.: Not only the museum from Sibiu is a promoter and a factor linking the Railways with the rest of the company; we also have other extra-professional activities. For example, we have the railway modeling: on May the current year, at Sfantu Gheorghe an international railway modeling manifestation took place, where there have been exhibited models of railway vehicles achieved by them (one of them being Mr. Szallas Jozsef, whose creations have drawn everyone's attention).
They are also passionate people in point of Esperanto language, there is a tourism side organized through the Artistic and Intellectual Union of the Romanian Railway men, affiliated to FISAIC - and, from this point of view, Brasov has been always quite active; still on May of this year a delegation of the Esperanto speakers from Brasov has attended an international congress at Dressda (Germany). The initiative of passionate people from this area have also issued a few interesting monographs about the Romanian Railways. And there has been recently inaugurated on our rail region area this narrow gauge railway section, Targu Mures - Band, which represents a pioneering in point of railway tourism, because we are going to open up other such routes.
R.J.: To what extend do you consider that Brasov Rail Region, situated from the geographical point of view in the middle of the country, can be a determining factor in the well development of the entire railway activity?
I.C.: There could appear within the reorganization, who knows, a redistribution of the sub-units, their merging and an improvement of the activity through this different division of the tasks on Tracks, Equipment and Traffic branches. Anyway, no matter the manner in which this redistribution will be performed, I am sure that there will be no problems from the point of view of providing, on one hand, the continuity of the activities, and, on the other hand, the solution of all the emergencies. Because there is a series of projects in development stage, started off since the last year, and there is also a series of actions started off this year. Besides the major objectives that I have mentioned, there are in development process a series of "normal' works; current overhauls, general overhauls, investments etc, all these should be finalized because they are related to the maintenance of the operability of the tracks and equipment, to the provision of the line capacities and of the shunting areas and, in the same time, they represent a premise for the preparation of the works at the Corridor IV, which crosses on a quite long distance Brasov Rail Region.
Anyway, Main section 300, which is centered upon the respective railway corridor, is very important for the provision of the railway links between the Southern, Capital and the western area of the country; but still important will be the other two main sections crossing Brasov area: the one from Sibiu to Sf. Gheorghe - Miercurea Ciuc - Ciceu - Deda, on Main Section 400, which take us to the north- western side of the country. Yet, I repeat, the corollary or better said the imperative of all the activities unfolded by us is represented by the prevention of the safety traffic.
R.J.: Not so long ago, the action initiated by MLPTL took place under the catchword "A cleaner railway! Be civilized, you will gain a lot!", which has been unfolded within CFR SA; how was that unfolded on Brasov rail Region?
I.C.: It has normally unfolded, as on the other rail regions, being closely supervised at the level of the company's management; it was integrated, in fact, in a larger action, "Cleaner Romania!". We made everything that was possible to show that on the area of Brasov Rail Region there are disciplined people, decided to change a bit the face of the railways, even if the trash, the wastes found along the railways or in other public places do not come from the Railway activity.

Improvement and re-qualification, in Brasov

The professional formation activity of the employees within the rail region is not at all neglected in Brasov, being performed by mediation of several profile institutions.
Therefore, at the Training and Qualification Center of the Railway Personnel Bucharest took place, during the last period of time, training courses - for the positions of operator and chief of station, formation courses - for instructors, integration courses - for economists and probation engineers, as well as for foreign language, improvement courses for the inspectors of the site, that over 20 employees of the rail region took advantage of. Concomitantly, at the Qualification Center Brasov there have been organized qualification courses in landscape - flowers specialists, pointsman, barrier guardian, craftsman for the track and work of art maintenance, chief of team for track and work of art maintenance, pitcher, heavy machine mechanic, IDM. Four employees have taken advantage of Quality management course, within the Romanian Association for Quality, and other two have attended pots-university courses. This simple enumeration proves the permanent concern of the railway men from Brasov to increase their level of professional training, their ambition to be always better.
And we can not move on without reminding the fact that there have been made great financial efforts for the endowment of the local qualification center in this respect, where presently there are in development stage works for the increase of the standard of the accommodation spaces.

General Overhaul, up to date

Still at the chapter of current activities that are developed on the rail region area we have found out that modernization works and general overhauls are performed at the hall 1 of the Unit for the Mechanized Maintenance of the Track (SIMC), within the Tracks Division Brasov
The activity objective of SIMC Brasov mainly consists in the exploitation, maintenance and overhaul of the heavy track machines, as well as periodical overhauls at the railway lines on the rail region area. Currently, SIMC Brasov has 144 employees, the great majority being heavy track mechanics.
The material "dowry" of SIMC Brasov is formed of 37 devices, which are used for the accomplishment of the objective of this unit:

· 9 ballast screening machines, among which eight of MCB 450 type and one of RM 76 UHR type, Plasser & Theurer production from 1976;
· 15 tamping machines, among which one SCM 0932 type, one PLM 07275 - for switch tamping, and 13 pieces of BNRI (tamping, leveling, shifting and relegating);
· three trains for wastes collection resulted from the screening activity: two types PSZ, URSS production, and one PTO, Poland production;
· eight ballast profiling machines, MP 150 type (150 pieces) and MP 135 (one piece);
· a track shifting line, R 2000 type, URSS Production;
· a multifunctional machine, UAM type.
The general overhaul works which are in development stage now cover two aspects: general overhaul at the thermal stations and at the electrical ones, the improvement of the water supply system and general overhauls at the infrastructure, at the visiting channel and washing ramp.

I can not conclude this first part of the story that I have conceived as a complex presentation of Brasov Rail Region - although we have observed later on that, if I start presenting everything that is going on this rail region area under these aspects, I could cover the pages of a whole issue of the magazine and it would not be enough yet -, so I can not conclude without thanking all those who have offered me information I required, so kindly and willing to share to their colleagues from all over the country their activity. So that, dear railway men from Brasov, see you in the next issue!

Brasov Rail Region, in figures
Total of network: 2,805 km (2,407 km - public field and 398 km - private field);
Double lines: 813 km;
Electrified lines: 1,305 km (1,007 km - current lines and 298 km - lines in the railway stations);
Narrow gauge lines: 55 km;
Current lines: 1,950 km (1,169 km - main railway sections, 264 km - main lines and 517 km - secondary lines);
Lines in the railway stations: 855 km;
Track equipment: 3,506 pieces (2,575 switchers, 163 TDJ and 75 suspenders);
Industrial lines: 323 lines;
Equipment:
- 101 CED stations;
- 2,550 CED switches;
- 1,065 km Interlocking System (BLA);
- 36/122 pieces of BAT/SAT barriers;
- 4.067 self-stopping equipment;
- 1,563 km of LC unfolded wire;
- 15 hauling substations (ST);
- 109 electrogen groups (GE);
Traffic:
- 3 traffic regulators;
- 57 stations;
- 79 operation halts;
- 11 independent halts, on centralized managing sections.
Works of art:
- 4,110 viaducts, bridges and culverts: 1,200 bridges with metallic decks, 2,387 concrete bridges, 23 pre- pressed concrete bridges, 76 brick bridges, 248 stone bridges;
- 17 tunnels, in over 11 km length.

Silvia Mirea