železniční trať Velké Březno – Lovečkovice – Verneřice/Úštěk Other

Railway line Velké Březno - Lovečkovice - Verneřice with branch to Úštěk is a historical object with a length of 19 km. It was launched in 1890 and the regular operation on it ended in 1978. The section between Great Brno and Lovečkovice has been registered as a cultural monument since 1998. Citizens' associations and associations of municipalities are currently seeking its gradual renewal.

In the area of the Czech Central Mountains the railway was crucial for the development of agriculture, especially fruit industry and hop industry. It also served industrial centres around Verneřice, where brown coal was extracted. In 1889, Verneřice entrepreneurs founded a public limited company Local Railways Velké Březno - Verneřice - Úštěk. The main initiators of the building were Julius Leon von Wernburg, the founder of the textile factory in Vernerice, and councilor and brewery brewery brewery Josef Renftel. The construction was carried out by the Vienna company Stern a Hafferl for the amount of CZK 1 200 000. The operation on the section from Velký Března to Verneřice started on 18 August 1890 on 60th birthday of emperor Franz Joseph I. The branch from Lovechkovice to Úštěk 8 km was opened on 11 September 1890. The entire route was operated by the Austrian Northwest Railways on behalf of the owner.

New legislation on local railways from 1880 was used in implementation. This has made it possible to better adapt track management to a more demanding terrain.

Initially, the main revenues of freight transport were generated, but later it also gained the importance of recreational passenger transport. In 1938-1945, the railway was part of the German Reich Railways. After 1945, the local industry suffered a downturn as a result of the displacement of the German population. This led to a gradual loss of runway profitability in favour of road transport. The last regular motor trains passed the route on May 27, 1978, freight trains two days earlier. In the following years the railway superstructure was carried in several sections - for example in the years 1978-1979 on the Verneřice-Lovečkovice section and in the years 1985- 1988 on the Úštěk-Lovečkovice section.

In 1993, the Civic Association Zubrnický Museum Railways was established, which has since sought to restore and privatise the line. In the same year several test runs took place on the section Velké Březno - Zubrnice. In 1998 the 11 km long section from the Great March through Zubrnice to Lovečkovice was declared a cultural monument of the Czech Republic. In 2008, all the remaining parts of the former national railway, including the Úštěk mountain station and the land, were transferred to the Zubrnická museum railway association. Since 28 October 2010, occasional public traffic has been restored to section Velké Březno - Zubrnice. Historic motor cars are used here, which carry mainly bicycles and prams. Since 2016, the T3 tourist line connecting Ústí nad Labem-Střekov with Zubrnice, usually using the motor car M 131.1 Hurvinek, has been operated with the support of the Ústí Region.

In the context of the current development, the reconstruction of other parts of the line is ongoing. In 2018 part of the upper part was laid in the former Lovečkovice station and in 2022 the railway station Úštěk upper station and the connection to the Lovosice - Česká Lípa line was restored. Other plans are aimed at creating a tram track in the Lovečkovice-Mukářov section, which is planned by the Trammuseum. This line should have a 1000 mm gauge and a 600 / 750 V DC supply system. By converting this section into a tram track, the rest of the train will lose its character to Verneřice.

This historic route represents a fascinating link between the past and the present of the region. Its gradual restoration offers visitors a unique opportunity to observe technical history and experience travel in the context of the beautiful countryside of the Czech Central Mountains.