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Liechtenstein: one whole month without any trains
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I made this journey in 1984, when a lot of things were very different ! No visa or any special permission was required for the -- notionally non-stop -- run through a corner of the Ukraine: a squad of Soviet border guards joined the train for the time spent on Soviet territory, to prevent any "funny business". So far as I know, there are still rail services across the border east of Zagorz; but no longer between Zagorz and Przemysl that way.
Adlington
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That's no longer true.
Yep. Same here
My trip was in 1991 on the 3 times a week Warszawa - Zagorz through train.
This was a standard 'Corridor Train' (similar trains ran across other territories where the border changed after the railway was built)
The KGB / border guards guarded the four doors of each coach. Our train stopped in Chyrow (now Khyriv I believe) , where there were Soviet Kriegsloks in store (possibly occasionally active).
I was on the way to see a surviving pocket of steam working with Ty2 Kriegsloks based at Zagorz shed and working to Lupkow and Kroscienko (photos to follow)
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My 84 trip was on the once-each-way-daily local between Zagórz and Przemyśl (d. Zagórz 0632 -- the working which I took -- d. Przemyśl approx. 1530). At that time, the local was regularly rostered for steam (Ty2) haulage, as was the case on my journey; the Warszawa through train could be steam or diesel at random.
The local consisted of three bogie coaches; at the last station in Poland on the Zagórz side, ten freight wagons were added on to the tail of the train, for transit through to Przemyśl. We passed through Chyrow / Khyriv without stopping, as per plan: a Soviet Kriegslok was out in the open adjacent to the station, in good condition but not in steam; another steam loco was discernible but unidentifiable, within the tightly closed shed. Disappointing to see nothing in steam there, but that scene was always unpredictable -- and my journey was on a Sunday, when maybe even atheists tend to take a rest...
Look forward with interest to your pictures. I cant reciprocate, Im afraid: Im essentially not a photter; and photography in those exact circumstances in 1984, would not have been a wise ploy.
The local consisted of three bogie coaches; at the last station in Poland on the Zagórz side, ten freight wagons were added on to the tail of the train, for transit through to Przemyśl. We passed through Chyrow / Khyriv without stopping, as per plan: a Soviet Kriegslok was out in the open adjacent to the station, in good condition but not in steam; another steam loco was discernible but unidentifiable, within the tightly closed shed. Disappointing to see nothing in steam there, but that scene was always unpredictable -- and my journey was on a Sunday, when maybe even atheists tend to take a rest...
Look forward with interest to your pictures. I cant reciprocate, Im afraid: Im essentially not a photter; and photography in those exact circumstances in 1984, would not have been a wise ploy.
In the early 'eighties, the steam-hauled locals over the relatively direct route via Chyrow / Khyriv (102 km.) took -- allowing for all the messing-about consequent on running through the Ukraine -- four hours for the AM run ex Zagorz, and four and a half for the PM ditto ex Przemysl. One reckons that a really fast cyclist could have beaten, certainly, the PM train from Przemysl to Zagorz !
Adlington
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We've moved a bit eastwards from Liechtenstein by now, haven't we? 
Adlington
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Yes, there is a picturesque footpath starting in Rosenheim, saving a good few kilometres
We have come a long way from Liechtenstein here. The story as originally linked is pretty poor journalism - the line's primary use has always been for through traffic from Austria to Switzerland so from Feldkirch to Buchs and beyond e.g. the EC now RJ trains and freight. It is run by Austrian Railways up to Buchs.
On a related note I recall driving along the old road via Schaan once and we were stopped by the Liechtenstein police as part of a routine patrol. Given how small the principality is, we naturally found this highly amusing. The policeman did take it with good humour as I politely explained in German the reason we looked amused - I asked how many highway patrol cars they have and with a smile and a laugh I seem to recall the answer was 2.
Elsewhere someone asked re territories inside the EU why the Channel Island approach cannot apply to the UK. Without getting into the politics (though the undertone of the question was clear to me), your answer lies in understanding what is the UK and what not and also the accession treaty and annexes which for all Member States clearly set out how their territories are to be dealt with on joining. A mistake often made is to think the UK includes the Channel Islands and IoM - they are not part of the UK at all but are Crown Dependencies. They were therefore not part of the territory of the UK joining the EU at accession, though they were included for the customs union (but outside VAT). As part of this arrangement (Protocol 3), the Islanders do not benefit from FoM for people unless they were born in the UK (or at least one parent/grand parent born there) or have lived in UK for 5 years at which point they gain that right across the EU. The same in reverse applies so EU nationals cannot exercise FoM in the Channel Islands.
So in a nutshell protocol 3 gave the islands access to the markets (as part of customs union) but not other benefits. Essentially they are within the Single Market for the purposes of trade in goods, but are third countries in all other respects. Seek and ye shall find - see this report here for details. https://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld201617/ldselect/ldeucom/136/136.pdf
And before you raise the geek flag - I am an lawyer that works in a related field. The history on how it was negotiated in the 60s is also fascinating. One last point to note - now the UK will leave that also ends protocol 3 which leaves them with an issue as they are dependencies so cannot negotiate their own external relations! You don't hear much about that conundrum, do you and they risk losing access to the EU for trade.
On a related note I recall driving along the old road via Schaan once and we were stopped by the Liechtenstein police as part of a routine patrol. Given how small the principality is, we naturally found this highly amusing. The policeman did take it with good humour as I politely explained in German the reason we looked amused - I asked how many highway patrol cars they have and with a smile and a laugh I seem to recall the answer was 2.
Elsewhere someone asked re territories inside the EU why the Channel Island approach cannot apply to the UK. Without getting into the politics (though the undertone of the question was clear to me), your answer lies in understanding what is the UK and what not and also the accession treaty and annexes which for all Member States clearly set out how their territories are to be dealt with on joining. A mistake often made is to think the UK includes the Channel Islands and IoM - they are not part of the UK at all but are Crown Dependencies. They were therefore not part of the territory of the UK joining the EU at accession, though they were included for the customs union (but outside VAT). As part of this arrangement (Protocol 3), the Islanders do not benefit from FoM for people unless they were born in the UK (or at least one parent/grand parent born there) or have lived in UK for 5 years at which point they gain that right across the EU. The same in reverse applies so EU nationals cannot exercise FoM in the Channel Islands.
So in a nutshell protocol 3 gave the islands access to the markets (as part of customs union) but not other benefits. Essentially they are within the Single Market for the purposes of trade in goods, but are third countries in all other respects. Seek and ye shall find - see this report here for details. https://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld201617/ldselect/ldeucom/136/136.pdf
And before you raise the geek flag - I am an lawyer that works in a related field. The history on how it was negotiated in the 60s is also fascinating. One last point to note - now the UK will leave that also ends protocol 3 which leaves them with an issue as they are dependencies so cannot negotiate their own external relations! You don't hear much about that conundrum, do you and they risk losing access to the EU for trade.
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duesselmartin
Established Member
Well, it has gone a tad OT
For what it's worth, it was on this line that I experienced the only time I've stood on terra firma and not known which country I was in. I'd been to Schaan and caught the lunchtime train back to Feldkirch. I'd not really paid any attention to the other stations on the line or which country they are in. The train broke down in Nendeln, and the man at the station appeared in an ÖBB uniform. I was aware that ÖBB operates the line so there was no clue there. I didn't have much German at the time and in any case my main priority was getting to Feldkirch so asking which country I was in wasn't that important. And anyway he had a fair few passengers to help. So it was only when the 'bus passed through the customs point that I found out I'd been in Liechtenstein.
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