LNW-GW Joint
Veteran Member
Knowing I would be passing through Brasov recently, I booked a ride on the afternoon Softrans service to Bucharest.
It's one of two 4-car EMUs offering an open access service in competition with state-owned CFR.
It's one class, and the fare was RON 30 (about £6) for 166km.
If you book on line, you get a booking reference and seat number to show on board, where they collect the cash.
The CFR 2nd class fare is RON 38 if you book in advance, RON 50-odd on the day, and they operate everything from slow stoppers to international expresses on the route.
The Softrans Hyperion unit is a typical modern EMU, much like a Desiro (2+2 firm seating, mix of tables and airline seats, aircon, toilets, automatic wide doors).
The two train sets have all-over vinyl ads. One advertises the Carpathian ski resorts, the other Lays crisps (the local Walkers) - see pic taken at Brasov.
However, in an epic fail but all too typical these days, the all-over ads cover the entire window area, so you get poor views out and a stippled background to any photos you take.
In fact, the view is clearer out of the more distant opposite seat than the window nearest you.
The PIS tells you where you are, but doesn't scroll or give you any journey information.
It seems the trains are owned by Softrans, which is a subsidiary of Softronic, the successor to Electroputere in Craiova (builders of most of CFR's locos and also some of our Class 56s).
The two trains run Craiova-Bucharest in the morning peak, partly combined, and then split with one unit going to Constanza and the other to Brasov, reversing the pattern in the afternoon to both end up at Craiova at night.
CFR, of course, has the better frequency and (occasionally) better loco-hauled stock, but also has some shockers in its rolling stock inventory.
Running times are similar.
Nothing runs faster than 140km/h in Romania (and not much of that), except sections of the Bucharest-Constanza line on which 160km/h is allowed.
It seems the operation is really a shop-window for Softronic's Hyperion EMU range.
Not bad, but please get rid of the window ads!
I need to go again on CFR to get a decent view of the Carpathians.
Does anybody else have experience of the Softrans service?
http://www.softrans.ro/
https://www.softronic.ro/engb-index.html
It's one of two 4-car EMUs offering an open access service in competition with state-owned CFR.
It's one class, and the fare was RON 30 (about £6) for 166km.
If you book on line, you get a booking reference and seat number to show on board, where they collect the cash.
The CFR 2nd class fare is RON 38 if you book in advance, RON 50-odd on the day, and they operate everything from slow stoppers to international expresses on the route.
The Softrans Hyperion unit is a typical modern EMU, much like a Desiro (2+2 firm seating, mix of tables and airline seats, aircon, toilets, automatic wide doors).
The two train sets have all-over vinyl ads. One advertises the Carpathian ski resorts, the other Lays crisps (the local Walkers) - see pic taken at Brasov.
However, in an epic fail but all too typical these days, the all-over ads cover the entire window area, so you get poor views out and a stippled background to any photos you take.
In fact, the view is clearer out of the more distant opposite seat than the window nearest you.
The PIS tells you where you are, but doesn't scroll or give you any journey information.
It seems the trains are owned by Softrans, which is a subsidiary of Softronic, the successor to Electroputere in Craiova (builders of most of CFR's locos and also some of our Class 56s).
The two trains run Craiova-Bucharest in the morning peak, partly combined, and then split with one unit going to Constanza and the other to Brasov, reversing the pattern in the afternoon to both end up at Craiova at night.
CFR, of course, has the better frequency and (occasionally) better loco-hauled stock, but also has some shockers in its rolling stock inventory.
Running times are similar.
Nothing runs faster than 140km/h in Romania (and not much of that), except sections of the Bucharest-Constanza line on which 160km/h is allowed.
It seems the operation is really a shop-window for Softronic's Hyperion EMU range.
Not bad, but please get rid of the window ads!
I need to go again on CFR to get a decent view of the Carpathians.
Does anybody else have experience of the Softrans service?
http://www.softrans.ro/
https://www.softronic.ro/engb-index.html
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