Bosphorus Express

Bosphorus Express
Bosfor Ekspresi

The Bosphorus Express at the Sirkeci Terminal in Istanbul.
Overview
Service type	InterCity
Status	Operating
Locale	European Turkey, eastern Bulgaria, southern Romania
First service	1971
Current operator(s)	TCDD, BDZ, CFR
Route
Start	Sirkeci Terminal, Istanbul
Stops	8
End	Gara de Nord, Bucharest
Average journey time	13 hours, 29 minutes
Service frequency	Daily each way
Train number(s)	81032, 492, 464 (westbound), 81031, 461 (eastbound)
On-board services
Sleeping arrangements	Private sleeping room accommodations and couchette cars
Catering facilities	Dining car
Baggage facilities	Yes
Technical
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in)
Electrification	Istanbul to Kapıkule and Dimitrovgrad to Ruse
Track owner(s)	TCDD Istanbul-Kapıkule BDZ Kapitan Andreevo-Ruse CFR Giurgiu-Bucharest
Route map Legend Distance Station 0 km İstanbul 27 km (16.8 mi) Halkalı 129 km (80 mi) Çerkezköy 229 km (142 mi) Alpullu 250 km (155 mi) Pehlivanköy 296 km (184 mi) Edirne 316 km (196 mi) Kapıkule Turkey/Bulgaria border 336 km (209 mi) Svilengrad 347 km (216 mi) Lyubimets 363 km (226 mi) Harmanli 378 km (235 mi) Simeonovgrad 401 km (249 mi) Dimitrovgrad 434 km (270 mi) Mihajlovo 456 km (283 mi) Stara Zagora 483 km (300 mi) Tulovo 491 km (305 mi) Dabovo 514 km (319 mi) Krastec 530 km (329 mi) Plachkovci 538 km (334 mi) Trjavna 547 km (340 mi) Tsareva Livada 556 km (345 mi) Drjanovo 565 km (351 mi) Sokolovo 573 km (356 mi) Debelec 579 km (360 mi) Veliko Tirnova 592 km (368 mi) Gorno Oryahovitsa 622 km (386 mi) Polski Trambesh 635 km (395 mi) Bjala 653 km (406 mi) Borovo 666 km (414 mi) Dve Mogili 681 km (423 mi) Ivanovo 704 km (437 mi) Russe Bulgaria/Romania border 717 km (446 mi) Giurgiu 780 km (485 mi) Videle 831 km (516 mi) Bucharest

The Bosphorus Express, also known as the Trans Balkan Express (Turkish: Bosfor Ekspresi), is an international passenger train running between Istanbul, Turkey and Bucharest, Romania. It runs together with the Balkans Express until Dimitrovgrad upon entering Bulgaria, where the later continues to Sofia. The train is jointly operated by three national railways; the Turkish State Railways, the Bulgarian State Railways, and the Romanian State Railways. The train serves important cities like Istanbul, Edirne, Russe and Bucharest. The Bosphorus Express started service in 1971.

Stock

The train is pulled by a variety of locomotives in each country. Today the train consists of 3-4 cars usually mixed from the three railways. There are two Couchettes, either TCDD Intercity stock or CFR 59-50 stock, a single coach car, either TCDD or CFR, and a CFR sleeping car. Since the train uses electrified and non-electrified track, locomotives pulling the train also change. From Istanbul, the train is pulled by an E43000 electric locomotive until Kapıkule, where a BDZ class-07 diesel locomotive becomes the motive power. At Dimitrovgrad, Bulgaria, the BDZ class-07 de-couples and either a BDZ class-43 or a BDZ class-45 electric locomotive couples onto the train. At Russe, the BDZ electric locomotive changes with a Romanian class-65 diesel locomotive, which pulls the train to Bucharest.

The following configurations are typically used today:
Bucharest-Russe

• CFR Class-65 Locomotive
• CFR Couchette
• CFR Sleeper
• TCDD Couchette

Russe-Gorna Oryahovitsa

• BDZ Class-43 or BDZ Class-45 Locomotive
• CFR Couchette
• CFR Sleeper
• TCDD Couchette
• BDZ Coach

Gorna Oryahovitsa-Dimitrovgrad

• BDZ Class-43 or BDZ Class-45 Locomotive
• CFR Sleeper
• TCDD Couchette
• BDZ Coach

Dimitrovgrad-Kapıkule

• BDZ Class-07 Locomotive
• TCDD Couchette
• CFR Sleeper
• TCDD Couchette

Kapıkule-İstanbul

• TCDD E43000 Locomotive
• TCDD Couchette
• CFR Sleeper
• TCDD Couchette

Between Russe and Dimitrovgrad, 1 or 2 BDZ Coaches are added to the train for domestic travel.

Route

The journey starts by bus for 125 km at Istanbul's Sirkeci Terminal. After Edirne it arrives at the town of Kapıkule on the Turkish-Bulgarian border. The electric locomotive disconnects and is replaced with a diesel locomotive Passengers need to disembark and cross the rail tracks to clear passport control. Passengers transfer to a bus at Dimitrovgrad, reboarding the train after a six-hour journey. After the city of Gorna Oryahovitsa, the train arrives at the city of Ruse on the Danube river. A diesel locomotive once again takes over, and it crosses the Danube via the Danube Bridge and into the Romanian town of Giurgiu, stopping at the Giurgiu Nord Railway Station. Then it continues north to Bucharest. After winding its way around the city, the train enters Bucharest from the northwest into Gara de Nord station.

References

External links

Media related to Bosphorus Express at Wikimedia Commons