DR1A DMU routes from Riga

[SandsofEss]

I’ll be in Riga for 24 hours in October, hoping to finally get the chance to ride an unmodified DR1A DMU.

I posted asking advice about this 18 months ago here.

Does anybody have the latest intel on where these are running, and how best to maximise my chances of taking one on a weekend?

If routes remain plentiful, any top tips on interesting short journeys out of Riga will be much appreciated.

 

[stadler]

I’ll be in Riga for 24 hours in October, hoping to finally get the chance to ride an unmodified DR1A DMU.

I posted asking advice about this 18 months ago here.

Does anybody have the latest intel on where these are running, and how best to maximise my chances of taking one on a weekend?

If routes remain plentiful, any top tips on interesting short journeys out of Riga will be much appreciated.

The timetables are available to download in PDF format on the VIVI (what was PV previously) website here:

Vilcienu kustības pamatsaraksts

vivi.lv

There are still plenty in service and it is very easy to find a DR1A train by looking at the train number at the top of each journey:

• Any train numbered 7XX or 8XX (except for 873/874 and 889/890/891/892) or numbered 6871/6872/6873/6874 is guaranteed to be a RVR DR1A train.

• Any train numbered 873/874 or 889/890/891/892 is guaranteed to be a Lithuanian Pesa 730ML train.

• Any train numbered 6XXX is guaranteed to be a Skoda 16EV train (except for 6871/6872/6873/6874)

So you can simply check the timetable and find a DR1A train easily.

But to summarise the routes that they work it is as follows below.

RVR DR1A trains work the following:

• All trains to/from Riga that start or terminate at Sigulda / Cesis / Valmiera / Valga (except trains labelled 873/874)

• All trains to/from Riga that start or terminate at Daugavpils / Kraslava / Indra / Rezekne / Zilupe / Madona / Gulbene

• All trains to/from Riga that start or terminate at Liepaja

• Four trains to/from Riga that start or terminate at Jelgava (only trains labelled 6871/6872/6873/6874)

Lithuanian Pesa 730ML trains work the following:

• All trains to/from Riga that start or terminate at Vilnius (trains numbers 889/890/891/892)

• Two trains to/from Riga that start or terminate at Valga (only trains labelled 873/874)

Skoda 16EV trains work the following:

• All trains to/from Riga that start or terminate at Ogre / Lielvarde / Aizkraukle

• All trains to/from Riga that start or terminate at Dubulti / Sloka / Kemeri / Tukums

• All trains to/from Riga that start or terminate at Carnikava / Saulkrasti / Skulte

• All trains to/from Riga that start or terminate at Jelgava (except trains labelled 6871/6872/6873/6874)

There are still plenty of DR1A units in use on the non electrified lines so you will have no issue finding some of them. They are very nice trains and kept in good condition despite their age. But sadly all of the electric ER2 units are gone now.

 

[SandsofEss]

Wow. An incredibly comprehensive reply. Thank you!

 

[ainsworth74]

But sadly all of the electric ER2 units are gone now.

Ah I was about to ask if any of them were still hanging on. Shame! Obviously the modern EMUs are a gargantuan leap forward for passengers (reckon they're better than the 156 I get to work most days! ) but from an enthusiast perspective they really were fun contraptions.

 

[StephenHunter]

Looking to do Riga myself next year. Any advice?

 

[class387]

Somewhat related to this, I discovered this summer that, in addition to their heavily modernised units, Lithuania has a few DR1A in an even more original condition than Latvia. They have the low backed seats (compared to the coach seats in Latvia's) and original light fittings, though I'm not sure how many such units there are?

 

[Zamracene749]

If routes remain plentiful, any top tips on interesting short journeys out of Riga will be much appreciated.

Sigulda? Pleasant little town with a scenic cablecar across the river gorge, castles and a few places to dine.

 

[izvor]

Sigulda? Pleasant little town with a scenic cablecar across the river gorge, castles and a few places to dine.

Agree entirely.

 

[SandsofEss]

Excellent. Thank you both for the tip. We'll look at Sigulda now.

 

[StephenHunter]

How does ticketing work on the system?

 

[stadler]

How does ticketing work on the system?

Ticketing is very simple and very cheap. You can buy a ticket from a ticket office or from the guard onboard the train.

You can buy a ticket on the train too and it is perfectly allowed to just board and take a seat and wait for the guard to come and sell a ticket. So that can be useful if you are looking for certain units and only decide which train to go on at the last minute. If you board at a station with an open ticket office then a very small EUR1.00 surcharge applies. No surcharge applies if you board at a station without a ticket office or where the ticket office is closed.

Also note that diesel trains have a EUR1.00 surcharge when riding them between stations served by electric trains. You can pay this surcharge onboard or at a ticket office when buying a ticket.

Some of the diesel trains have a first class section and this costs a EUR1.50 surcharge to sit in. You can pay this surcharge onboard or at a ticket office when buying a ticket.

 

[Segedunum]

They used to have a very simple app back before the rebrand to Vivi which allowed you to buy a ticket in seconds. Naturally they've ruined that now and made one that's unusable without a Latvian phone number it seems - as you have to verify both your email and phone number (the latter simply doesn't work).

The Vivi website allows sale of tickets without registration but is rather less intuitive.