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The works of the Deva-Brad railway lasted almost half a century, but for only a decade the trains were able to run on the railway line of more than 30 kilometers, one of the most spectacular in Romania.
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The construction of the railway that cuts the Metaliferi mountains began in 1939, and until 1946, the Deva – Stoieneasa Viaduct, of 14 kilometers and Brad – Luncoiu Viaduct, of 5 kilometers, were built.
VIDEO WITH THE OLD RAILWAY IN THE CAVE AREA
Thousands of Romanians worked, as well as Jews and Soviet prisoners, on the railway in the west of the country. Another two kilometers were built until 1961 between Luncoiu and Dealul Fetii, where a mining operation operated.
VIDEO WITH VĂLIŞOARA TUNNELS
The middle section of the railway, between Stoieneasa and Dealul Fetii, was pending execution, but the works on its 14 kilometers began only two decades later. From March 1, 1979 to December 11, 1987, when the first passenger train, with Nicolae Ceausescu among the passengers, crossed the Deva – Brad distance for the first time, the most difficult part of the route was worked on.
Vălişoara tunnel. PHOTO: Daniel Guţă.
“Of the three sections (Mintia – Stoeneasa, Brad – Dealul Fetii and Stoeneasa – Dealul Fetii), the latter presented the highest degree of difficulty, from the geological and topographical point of view, with a drop of 164 meters and with numerous landslides of land, a 13.9-kilometer-long stretch, with 31 bridges and walkways, 11 viaducts, four tunnels, 11 kilometers of consolidation of slopes and embankments, 17.8 kilometers of ditches, for which they excavated 1.2 million meters cubic meters of rock and earth and poured more than 400,000 cubic meters of concrete ”, said engineer Liviu Corfaru, at the inauguration of the railway in 1987.
The official explanation
Ten years later, a landslide marked the beginning of the end for the Deva-Brad Railroad.
Painted concrete block, in the area of the Cave, where a landslide occurred. Photo: THE TRUTH. Daniel Guţă.
“The traffic disruption on the Deva – Brad route occurred on April 22, at 5 am, due to heavy rains. They caused landslides on several sections of the railway. The landslides were more accentuated at km 19 – 20, Stoieneasa – Ormindea, caused by the movement of the slope on the right side, in the direction of Brad. The return of the line to traffic is currently impossible, as the terrain in that area has not stabilized. There are still vertical collapses, caused by the inevitable infiltrations in the affected area. Therefore, due to this state of affairs, but also others generated by this situation, repair work on the line can only begin after it is verified that the ground in the critical areas of the railway will stabilize ”, he reported. in the spring of 1997, the representatives of the CFR Timişoara Regional.
The area where the landslide occurred in 1997. Image from 2000.
The works were never resumed and over time the railway was mostly closed, except for the Deva – Mintia – Chişcădaga section, where freight trains still run.
Vălişoara tunnel. Photo by Daniel Guţă. THE TRUTH.
In the Peştera – Stoieneasa area, where the landslides occurred, the embankment of the old railway remained, which the locals use as a road. Traces of the fury of nature and the floods that devastated the villages in the area in 1997 are long gone. Much of the old railway construction has also disappeared, but the views offered by the old route continue to impress those who venture down it.
Railway embankment. Photo: Daniel Guţă. THE TRUTH.
Technical data on the railway
The simple non-electrified Deva – Brad railway was built between 1939 -1987, in three stages: Stage I: Brad – Dealu Fetii (7 kilometers) inaugurated on 01.01.1961; Stage II: Deva – Stoieneasa (15 kilometers) opened on 07/01/1963; Stage III: Deva – Brad (36 kilometers) opened on 12.11.1987.
At its inauguration, the Deva – Brad line had stations and stops: Deva – Păuliş Lunca – Păuliş Lunca Gr.T – Stoeneasa – Băiţa – Ormindea – Dealu Fetii – Brad Stop – Brad.
It had 82 bridges and bridges, 14 viaducts, and 4 tunnels. The most important were:
The bridge over Mureş, with a total length of 301 meters, which is the largest work of art on the route.
The bridge over Mureş, Mintia. Freight trains going to Chişcădaga also run through it. Photo: Daniel Guţă. THE TRUTH.
The Stoeneasa and Peştera viaducts, with spans of 36.6 + 62 + 36.6 meters and, respectively, of 5 x 25 meters. They were executed without aprons, which were no longer shipped from Germany due to the war.
Stoieneasa Viaduct 1. Photo: Daniel Guţă. THE TRUTH.
Viaduct 2 Stoieneasa. Photo: Daniel Guţă. TRUTH
The Luncoiu viaduct, formed by eight reinforced concrete vaults in the center, 20 meters wide, has a total of 217 meters and is built in curves and counter curves with a radius of 300 meters.
Luncoiu Viaduct. PHOTO: THE TRUTH. Daniel Guţă.
Lucnoiu Viaduct. DRDP Timisoara.
The four tunnels. The Dealu Mare Tunnel, 352 meters long, and the Small Tunnel, 216 meters long, were excavated according to the Austrian method, without special problems. In addition, the Vălişoara tunnel, 130 meters, and Ormindea, 156 meters.
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I walk through the pine forest. Vălișoara area, Deva – Brad railway, closed since 1997. PHOTO: Daniel Guță. THE TRUTH.
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