PLANS FOR DEVELOPMENT OF HUNGARIAN RAILROADS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00809A000700040518-1
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: R
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: October 27, 2011
• Sequence Number: 518
• Publication Date: February 21, 1952
• Content Type: REPORT

Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for
CLASSIFICATION RESTRICTED Kt S I HIC I ED
SECURITY INFORMATION
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY REPORT
INFORMATION FROM
FOREIGN DOCUMENTS OR RADIO BROADCASTS CD NO.
COUNTRY Hungary
SUBJECT Transportation - Rail
HOW
PUBLISHED Monthly periodical
WHERE
PUBLISHED Budapest
DATE
PUBLISHED Jan 1951
LANGUAGE Hungarian
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or no stint ITSTO 011011 Tot SWIM Oo l NOflul 'C1 M
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STAT
DATE OF
INFORMATION 1951
SUPPLEMENT TO
REPORT NO.
PLANS FOR DEVELOPMENT OF HUNGARIAN RAILROADS
fGraphe referred to are appended.7
The first Hungarian workers, competition was in the field of railroads,
nc.mely, the overhauling of 500 locomotives and 10,000 railroad cars.
in 1950, the Hungarian railroads carried 90 percent more freight and 154
percent more passenger traffic than in the years preceding World War II.
For the most part, the major rail arteries which will carry the projected
Increase in traffic have an obsolete track structurz. So far, it has been
possible to keep up smooth operations, but the antiquated track structure will
not be able to carry a further traffic increase. Since World War I, very little
overhauling has been dcne on the track structure ani. exceptionally heavy use
during the world wars has aggravated the situation.
At the beginning'of the Five-Year Plan, a 15-year program was worked out
for the modernization of the existing track structure. Although the goal set
for 1950 has not been completely fulfilled, still much obsolete track structure
has been replaced with modern material. A further step in the modernization of
trackage is the installation of modern safety devices, which began in the second
half of 1949.
During 1950, the building of second tracks, the enlargement of several im-
portant railroad stations and marshalling yards, the rebuilding of the Danube
bridge at Baja, as well as the building of new lines in connection with the
Stalin Works and the development of new mines, required large expenditures.
The electrification of the Budapest-Miskolc line was also started, and it is
planned to complete this project by the end of 1954.
The increase in the rolling stock of the Hungarian State Railroads (MAV)
is another important phase of the program. During the first year of the Five-
.ear Plan, MAV added the following to its rolling stock: 375-series steam
locomotives, narrow-gage rail motor cars, four-axle passenger cars, Gzk-series
STATE ::WiA_)
ARMY VIAIR
FBI
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boxcars, Jax-series open cars, three-axle tenders, and Kzm-series open freight
cars of Polish manufacture. Pneumatic brakes were installed in the cars and,
consequently, the MAV freight trains operate on pneumatic brakes. Several
cars were equipped with 85-ton coupling and 100-ton draft gear and bumpers.
The springs which raise the carrying capacity of the Izk-series cars from 21
tons to 25 tons were also ordered, as well as the dials designed to prevent
hotboxes.
Passenger cars have been classified into seven types: ABa, ABca, and Ca
for international traffic, Bak, Cak, and BCak for internal traffic, and Ha for
local traffic. The classification of caboose, passenger, acid freight cars,
and steam locomotives is in progress.
The steam locomotives were equipped with water-softening devices and blowers.
Among the innovations placed on the 411-series locomotives are boilers with stay
bolts, idling equipment, and Fono-type firegrates in three sections; also the
smokeboxes and journal boxes were changed. Equinning of the 424-series locomo-
tive; with rock-wool insulation and Fono-type firegratea and of the 324-series
loc^motives with up-to-date pistons and roller-bearing steering mechanisms
Ic was started. The 324- and 375-series compound locomotives are also being
wudernized.
Regarding the safety of rail transportation, in 1950, there was one death
(including suicides) per ?30,000 train-kilometers, and one injury per 200,000
craln-kilometers. As compared with 1949, compensation paid by the railroad for
damages to merchandise dropped 14 percent despite the fact that the volume
shipped had considerably increased. Total compensations paid by the railroad
amounted to 0.08 percent of the income derived from freight shipments.
The percentage of late trains has dropped as compared with 1949, but the
1950 results are still not satisfactory. In the fall of 1950, the employees
of the railroad initiated a movement to cut the incidence of lateness even
further. The lateness of passenger trains, especially of commuter trains, can
be blamed partly on overcrowding. There are not enough passenger cars, and
the management of the MAV is often forced to use rebuilt freight cars for pas-
senger transportation.
Traveling speed is a deciding factor inthe quality of freight transporta-
tion. The speed of express freight trains and of trains delivering LCL freight
has been satisfactory. During the second half of 1950, the speed of the other
freight trains was increased 15-20 percent; however, here, as well as in the
field of passenger transportation, the speed has not yet reached the optimum.
Several other factors influence the efficient and economical operation of
the railroad:
1. The Ratio of Freight to Dead Weight
During the past year, dead weight per passenger has improved only one
percent. Since the utilization of passenger trains is, in general, satisfactory,
any appreciable reduction in dead weight can come only after cars equipped with mod-
em, light-weight seating facilities are put in use. Dead weight per freight ton
has improved by 2.5 percent.
The freight-delivery capacity of a railroad increases when the time
required for the two loadings of freight cars on a rc.und trip decreases. Com-
pared with 1949, the 1950 improvement in this respect exceeded 10 percent.
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Since 1945, actual coal consumption at MAV has dropped steadily.
Graph 1 shows the results of the past 3 years. The rise in September and
October of 1950 was caused primarily by an inadequate coal mixture.
STAT
Following the Soviet example, productivity is measured by passenger-
kilometer and freight ton-kilometer performance per unit. Graph 2 shows pro-
ductivity for 1949 and 1950.
Several contest movements have come into being among the railroad work-
"re. Participants in the 2,000-tons Stakhanov+te movement have pledged to
have their locomotives move trains which are heavier than the weight norm es-
tra L;3r'during 1950lincreased toIn extenttthaty ItegaS load if freight
g possible to save
act.-51 peration of 4,500 thousand-ton freight trains.
The purpose of the 500-kilometer movement is to Increase a locomotive's
productive runs. Fifty additional locomotives would normally be required to
fulfill the gains made by the 63 percent of MAV's locomotives which are par-
ticipating so far.
The movement to increase speed voluntarily was made possible by a flex-
ible timetable issued by the railroad directorate. Daily, 100-150 freight
trains operate at a speed higher than the basic speed prescribed by the time-
table.
By the end of the Five-Year Plan, the railroads must be able to handle 50
percent more freight traffic and 35 percent more passenger traffic than in 1950.
Large investments and many renovations are required to achieve this goal.
Double tracks are needed on 200 kilometers of rail line, numerous major stations
and two marshalling yards must be enlarged, the track structure has to be re-
placed on 450 kilometers of trackage, and several bridges, among them the
Danube bridge at Ujpest, must be rebuilt. On several hundred kilometers of
the main lines, automatic safety devices must be installed. Modern locomo-
tives, several hundred passenger cars, and several thousand freight cars are
needed to complete the railroad's rolling stock. The rail net must be expanded
to link the new mining and industrial sites with the rest of the country's
economy.
The development of the Hungarian railroads must take place both quantita-
tively and qualitatively. Difficulties have been caused in the past by lack
of materials and delayed deliveries. Mechanization of many phases of railroad
work could not be started because the needed machinery is not manufactured in
the country and myst be imported. It would be of great advantage if domestic
factories could manufacture the small machine needed by the railroads, such as
tie drills, rail drills, rail saws, etc.
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STAT
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2011/10/31
CIA-RDP80-00809A000700040518-1