A fairly modern relic

Latvia has three tramway systems of which the largest, and indeed the oldest, is in the capital, Riga. The others are at the coastal resort of Liepaja, and the country’s second largest city, Daugavpils. During a holiday to see the tramway in Riga in October 2008 I decided to take a day trip to Daugavpils, mainly because I had a desire to see the old RVZ6 cars of Soviet design, a type which normally requires a trip behind the former Iron Curtain to see the remaining examples. Whilst I will review Riga in a future installment, I had to forgo the trip to Liepaja this time as the local train services required you to spend a night there to get a decent amount of time. However this was seen to be no major loss as the system is relatively small consisting of just one route and one tramcar type, the Tatra T4, and only seven cars are required out daily. Daugavpils seemed to offer much more interest in terms of routes and rolling stock, although I will admit I knew very little about what awaited me in this far flung outpost of Eastern Europe which sits just some 25/30km from the borders with Lithuania and Belarus. The 27km tramway is actually rather modern for a first generation system having opened in 1946, it being one of the better things to have happened to the area during the Stalin era which saw massive industrialisation in the years immediately after the second world war. Despite this relative modernity the system displays an air of dilapidation and neglect, not helped by the poor condition of much of the tram fleet and the areas of work worn pre and post war housing through which the various routes pass.

Daugavpils is situated on the river Daugava and is noted for some fine architecture in the historic centre of the city. It is also surrounded by many lakes and much parkland, and is an important railway centre. The city is directly connected to Riga by rail, although the journey by train is a bit of a bind as it takes almost four hours in each direction for the 230km journey. Four trains run per day in each direction and to maximize my day I opted for the first one out and the last one back. Having purchased my return ticket at Riga’s main station the day before, and for the very reasonable price of 9.17LVL (roughly £11.80), I boarded the 0710 Riga Pasazieru – Daugavpils, and took my seat within the very spartan accommodation which the ex-Soviet diesel multiple unit provided. No catering was provided on the train, so I was grateful that I’d had a coffee and a bite to eat before I departed from Riga – and little did I know just how hard I would find it to get something to eat in Daugavpils! My train arrived at the second city right on time at 1053, and shortly before it came to a halt I caught a glimpse of one of the RVZ6 trams that I had specifically gone to see. As my return train was not until 1800 this gave me a good seven hours to explore the system, and I followed the crowds of fellow passengers off the train assuming that they were heading in a direction that may lead me to the tramway. I expected that the railway station would include an interchange with other forms of transport and that I would walk straight onto a waiting tram, but this was not the case. Instead a series of derelict looking buildings and a petrol station were all that greeted me. However, I followed the other train passengers who had turned right out of the station and I arrived at a tram stop within a couple of minutes. Standing here, without a route map and with no knowledge of the frequency of service or even of how to purchase a ticket (and unable to speak either of the two local languages of Latvian and Russian!) was a fairly surreal experience. However before I had chance to ponder this predicament for too long a coupled set of RVZ6 cars appeared from a grassed reservation across the road and pulled up at the stop.

Coupled RVZ6 cars 028+027 approach the terminus by the main railway station

I boarded the leading car (028) and found a seat which was fortunately next to a system map that was stuck on a hardboard board which was positioned in the window at just the right height to block my view. I photographed the map so as I could refer to it during the day (thank goodness for digital cameras!) and then moved to a seat at which the window wasn’t obscured. The tram was very shabby inside, with peeling paint and much evidence of water ingress into the saloons which had rotted the lining panels and caused them to bow inwards. Deep seat cushions in brown vinyl and green pained interior panels all seemed to add to the down at heel appearance. As it was raining outside the tram had steamed up and the view outside was not very good, despite me having changed seats. With a traditional hiss of air brakes being released we set off. Fare collection turned out to be by roving conductor who all appeared to be either students or fairly elderly women. Despite having a designated conductor’s seat they were all happy to roam and didn’t expect the passenger to go to them. The fare was a flat 0.25LVL (about 33p), which was fortunately printed clearly on the tickets for me to see, as I don’t think either I or the conductor could ever have made ourselves understood. Tickets were torn off a roll and then ripped to validate them. I was glad that I had a pocket full of change to keep paying this small flat fare on boarding subsequent trams. The fare has increased since my visit and is now 0.30LVL (39p).

The spartan and damp interior of one of the RVZ6 cars

Daugavpils system map

Studying the route map I realised I was on route 1 which went through the city from the station (Stacija) to Butlerova. This route is basically the ‘main line’ of the three route tramway and is double track throughout, other termini being at the end of single track branches that connect with the main line at locations along its length. I decided that for this first ride I would get off at Saules Veikals as this appeared to be a location where all three routes converged and it seemed like a good place to observe the trams and maybe get some photographs, although by this time the heavens had opened and when I did alight I quickly ended up soaking wet! As can be seen from the map, the three routes are 1. Stacija – Butlerova, 2. Maizes Kombinats – Butlerova, and 3. Cietoksnis – Stropi, and I was now at the junction of routes 1/2 and 3. As well as the RVZ cars, which originated from Riga, of which there are 38*, Daugavpils also operates 13 Ust-Katav KTM-5 trams built in the early 1990s but looking much older, as well as a solitary KTM8 car built in 1994 (no.114). The system also has 12 Tatra T3 cars which previously ran in Schwerin, Germany, and accelerated the disposal of the worst of the RVZ cars some years earlier (*all fleet figures based on a 2005 stock count). Like Riga, all cars are fitted with trolley poles.

The ex-Schwerin Tatra cars are in excellent condition compared to the remainder of the fleet

Route 1 appeared to be operated by all types of cars which included both coupled and single RVZ and Tatra cars, whilst route 2 had single RVZ and KTM cars and route 3 seemed to be operated exclusively by KTM cars, this class always operating solo. After half an hour or so of observing the comings and goings of the tramway I boarded a KTM-5 car (105) on route 3 to Stropi, and found this to be a single track branch with passing loops which terminated at a large single track turning circle in a wooded area.

Ust-Katav car 105 at the wooded terminus at Stropi

This route was almost all on roadside reservations and passed by a number of cemeteries, with ladies in black boarding periodically carrying baskets of flowers for placing at the grave. The KTM-5 cars are of very basic construction and look much older than their c.16 years both in terms of design and condition. Externally they feature corrugated side paneling and three outside slung single piece doors which are operated by a bicycle chain on the inside of the door which looks like it could trap loose clothing if you were standing too close! I rode route 3 to the terminus at Stropi where I alighted and waited for the next car to arrive, which unfortunately was 20 minutes behind, and it was still raining! After this soggy delay I boarded the next car, another KTM-5, and rode back to the city centre area close to the junction where route 3 diverges to Cietoksnis, but alighted here for more photographs before catching an RVZ6 car on route 1 to Butlerova. This route passes through postwar housing developments before terminating at the main depot, opened in 1990, the trams disappearing into the confines of the depot complex where the turning circle is located. Not understanding the language and with the premises not looking as though it would welcome an interloper with a camera I stayed outside the enclosure on the public road until a further coupled set of RVZ cars emerged into service on route 1, which I caught back to a location near the university.

Photo: RVZ6 cars emerge from the main depot at Butlerova

After a fraught period of time unsuccessfully attempting to make myself understood in various food establishments in the city centre I was then fortunate enough to find a bakery close to the junction with route 2 at Ventspils and I was finally able to get something to eat and drink by using the proven method of pointing at something that had the price clearly displayed and tendering the correct money! I then caught RVZ6 car 061 to Maizes Kombinats, passing through an area of much earlier housing than that along routes 1 and 2 to Butlerova. Much of this single track route was set in badly maintained roads surrounded by typical Latvian wooden buildings, whilst the terminus was by a busy railway line along which three lengthy freight trains passed slowly by during the 20 minutes I was there. Riding again from here to the junction at Ventspils I then headed out to Cietoksnis on route 3, which diverges from the ‘main line’ by the Galerija shopping centre in the city centre. This branch is again single track but seems to a higher standard and again terminates in a single track loop at which I did not alight as time had started to press.

KTM-5 cars at the junction of route 3 to Cietoksnis

Once back at the Galerija there was just time for some more photographs before catching a tram on route 1 for the short journey back up to the railway station where I had left myself ample time to catch the 1800 back to Riga. Indeed, I was back at the station at 1715 where I found the train waiting at the station’s only platform. As I was aware that this was the last train of the day back to Riga and civilization as I knew it I wasn’t prepared to miss it! However, with ample time until departure I was able to nip back to the nearby tram stop to record in fading light some final views of the trams on which I had started my day, coupled RVZ6 cars 028+027. Unfortunately I had not managed a ride on one of the ex-Schwerin Tatra cars, which have been refurbished for use in Daugavpils and appeared to be of a much higher standard than everything else, whilst the solitary KTM-8 eluded me, and was not seen on my visit. However, I had become acquainted with the old RVZ6 cars, and the utilitarian KTM-5 cars - both types of trams I had never seen before, and had therefore achieved my goal for the day.

Departure from Daugavpils was prompt at 1800, and three hours and fifty two minutes later we rolled back into Riga’s main station, bang on time. A trip to Daugavpils can be a long day, with almost eight hours’ train travel on trains which are not particularly comfortable, but as I’ve yet to cross the borders beyond Latvia this has so far been my only opportunity to sample Soviet designed trams, and it was an experience I won’t forget in a hurry!

Daugavpils tram fleet
009 – 065 RVZ6 cars (1977-87). C.38 remain
070 – 081 Tatra T3 (1973-83). Ex-Schwerin
101 – 112 KTM-5 (1990-92)
114 KTM-8 (1994)

Current fares
LVL 0.30 (flat fare, payable to conductor on each journey)

For journeys between Riga and Daugavpils with Latvian Railways visit http://www.sirius.ldz.lv/

Written and illustrated by James Millington