Žilina railway hub disrupted by fire and signaling damage

Railway transport through the Žilina hub in Slovakia has been severely disrupted following a fire at the Žilina railway station. The incident caused significant damage to signaling equipment and cabling, particularly within cable shafts, forcing authorities to shut down traction power in the affected section for safety reasons.

As a result, regional train services have been replaced by temporary bus transport on several routes, including Krásno nad Kysucou – Žilina, Dolný Hričov – Žilina, Žilina – Varín, and Žilina – Rajec. Freight rail transport has been temporarily suspended. To maintain long-distance passenger services between Bratislava, Žilina, and Košice, ZSSK is utilizing diesel locomotives to operate trains independently of the overhead traction system.

Železnice Slovenskej republiky (ZSSK) has convened a crisis staff to manage the situation. Technical inspections of the fire-damaged areas are scheduled to take place once the sites have sufficiently cooled and dried. A timeline for the full restoration of normal operations will be determined following an assessment of the extent of the damage.