Albania - General Information
Country Name
Albania (Shqipëtare)
National railway system
National Railway Operator
Hekurudha Shqipëtare (HSH), has a basic website at www.hsh.com.al currently available in Albanian only.
Infrastructure Authority
Unknown
Language
Albanian
Currency
Lek
UIC code
numeric 41; alpha AL.
Timetable
Journey Planner
None.
Downloadable Timetable
The HSH website > Orare dhe Tarifat për Pasagjëre > Orari i trenave për udhetarë, njësia biznesit gives a single sheet showing the entire timetable.
Printed Timetable
No timetable is published by HSH, although train times are posted at stations.
Engineering Information
None.
Maps
There is no official HSH railway map. Quail Map Company publishes the Albanian Railway Guide, which includes track diagrams, motive power details and other information. General maps can be misleading, because they may be based on deliberately inaccurate information provided by the former communist government.
Ticketing
Tickets are not sold in advance, and are valid only on the first train following issue.
There is no railrover ticket covering Albania, but fares are extremely cheap.
Gauge
Standard
Electrification
None
Rule of the road
There are no double track lines, except in the immediate vicinity of principal stations, and the track used depends on operating convenience.
Other Railways
None
Tourist line
None
Metro
None
Trams
None
Recent and future changes
The branch to Rreshen closed to passenger traffic in November 1996 and the track was used to repair damage to the Shkodër line. The line between Fier and Ballsh closed to passenger traffic in 2001 but remains open for freight. The Durrës avoiding line linking the Tiranë and Elbasan lines, formerly used by passenger trains in summer and which appeared to have been out of use since 2006, was observed as being lifted in October 2012. The once daily train from Rrogozhinë to Pogradec was 'temporarily' withdrawn beyond Librazhd (a short distance east of Elbasan) in summer 2012, apparently after damage from road construction work. Reopening was understood to be scheduled for early in 2013 but the line remained closed as at September 2013.
Special notes
By comparison with other European systems, HSH is a very primitive railway, partly due to damage arising from civil disturbances in 1990-92 and 1997.
There are no international passenger trains to Albania, the one railway into Montenegro being used only for freight traffic. Principal routes to Western Europe are by air, or ferry from Brindisi (Italy).
Further information about Albanian Railways can be found at www.angelfire.com/ak/hekurudha/index.html