Railway in Szentendrei Néprajzi Múzeum

The Skansen Railway is the museum railway of the Szentendre Open-Air Ethnographic Museum handed over on 8 April 2009. Its operation was carried out by the staff of MÁV Nostalgia Ltd. until 2019. From 2021 the organization, management and execution of the entire railway operation is performed by the Museum within its own authority.

History

Construction began on 6 January 2009, and the first train made its first public run on 8 April 2009. The Skansen's aim was to showcase local-interest railway lines (colloquially called vicinials) built in large numbers in the country at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. The starting station of the Skansen Railway is the new entrance building of the Skansen, modeled after the Mezőhegyes railway station.

The line

The normal gauge track length is 2,115 metres. The superstructure consists of “c” type rails weighing 34.5 kg/m, manufactured in the mid‑1930s. Such rails can still be found today in sections of several hundred kilometres on the country's secondary lines, although at the time they were considered main‑line track. Local‑interest railways usually laid lighter “i” rails weighing 23.6 kg/m. The open‑line superstructure materials came from the Tiszatenyő–Hódmezővásárhely–Makó railway line during a track renewal carried out in the autumn of 2008 at former stopping places of Jaksorparti farms and the Kunszentmárton riverbank. The turnouts conform to MÁV standard 48.

The motor car

The motor car is a Ganz–Jendrassik type BCmot motor carriage, original track number BCymot 422, built in 1930 with factory number 80 096. Production of BCmot motor carriages began in 1926 and they were the characteristic vehicles of secondary lines for about 60 years (until the acquisition of Bzmot motor carriages). The exact date of its first journey is unknown. We do know that in the 1960s it was stationed at Vésztő. In 1989, renumbered from ABymot to A‑164, it became the motor carriage of the Békéscsaba Railway Management Board. During its renovation the original drive ratio was increased; the reduced top speed is not a problem on the short line.

From 15 March 2023, the BCmot with mechanical drive system number 468 also serves on the Skansen Railway.

Transportation

The Skansen Railway creates the possibility of transportation between the Museum's regional areas spread over more than 60 hectares under period-appropriate conditions, as well as providing a tourist experience. The trains operate according to a pre‑announced timetable. Travel information is available on the Skansen official website under the Skansen Train section.

Railway volunteering

The Open-Air Ethnographic Museum announced its railway volunteer program in September 2021, within which it launches a unique free training at the Museum. During the training, applicants interested in the railway can acquire railway tasks. After completing the course, volunteers can fill positions such as traffic service worker, switch operator, train attendant, ticket inspector, shunter, barrier operator, signal guard, and also become locomotive drivers on the Skansen Railway. Within the volunteer work, applicants can perform the service at the chosen time, as a hobby.