Leo Express has temporarily withdrawn its Talgo VI trainsets due to reliability issues. As a result, the Czech operator has had to cancel the four daily services on the Bohumín–Prague line operated with this rolling stock, hauled by a Vectron locomotive, since 31 July.
According to Railvolution, the measure affects services LE 1254, LE 1255, LE 1266 and LE 1265, scheduled to depart at 07:54 and 15:59 from Bohumín, and at 11:23 and 20:18 from Prague.
The Talgo VI sets had been assigned to this corridor on 14 July, after leaving Leo Express’s international services between Prague, Bratislava and Prešov, for which they had been deployed since the inauguration of the Prague–Bratislava route in April. Their brief stint on the Czech route was marked by operational irregularities and technical problems.
The company denies that there is an administrative ban on using these vehicles. “Nobody has banned the operation of the Talgo units,” Leo Express told the Czech magazine, which attributes the suspension to a technical incident expected to be resolved shortly. Some sources point to recurring failures in certain components, such as the doors.
Leo Express has three Talgo VI trains leased from Renfe Alquiler de Material Ferroviario, which had already been withdrawn from service in Spain. For the time being, their repair and return to service is planned, although the company has not specified what fault prompted the decision or communicated a return date.