The New Carriages For ZSSK

Based on the contract signed on 19 April 2017, ZSSK is also to receive from ŽOS Vrútky 28 Class Bmpz open space cars with deliveries scheduled for 2018 - 2020 and seven similar Class Ampz cars scheduled for delivery in 2020 - 21, all with a maximum speed of 160 km/h. The authorisation for the Class Bmpz was granted by the Slovak transport authority Dopravný úrad on 10 July 2018.

The first second class car, Bmpz 61 56 22-70 001, was presented to the public in July 2018 and subsequently entered regular service. A total of eight Bmpz cars were delivered to ZSSK in the same year. In 2019, 14 cars followed and this year the remaining six second class cars are to be delivered. 

Of the seven first class cars the Ampz 61-56 10-70 001-0 left ŽOS Vrútky on 7 April 2020, when it was sent to the VUZ Velim test centre, together with the Bmpz 61 56 22-70 023-0, i. e. first of the 2020-built batch. Both carriages were hauled by Vectron 383.213 of Budamar, the company which owns a 66 % share in ŽOS Vrútky.

The tests on the Ampz 001 concerned authorisation, the Bmpz 023 being used as a reference vehicle because some measurements required a second, comparable car to determine whether the measured values ​​were relevant. After the tests, both coaches returned to ŽOS Vrútky on 21 April.

For this purpose, the two-section ZSSK CARGO locomotive 131.063/064 was used. This particular locomotive, together with 131.009/010, is one of two Class 131s, which in 2019 were transferred to BULK TRANSSHIPMENT SLOVAKIA (BTS), a joint venture of Budamar Logistics (60 %) and ZSSK CARGO (40 %).