Dobre
Poland
Gauge : 750mm
Status : closed in 2002
Dobre was one of the last sugar factories in Poland using narrow gauge for the transport of sugar beet each year.
(Click on images for full size picture)
Dobre lies in the centre of Poland, approx 40km south of Torun. It forms part of the 750mm gauge network linking Sompolno and Krosniewice, but also has tracks for the transport of sugar beet trains. A few hundred metres from the station is Cuckrownia(Sugar Factory) Dobre.
In the sugar beet season which runs from about October to March, Dobre station can see the arrival of long sugar beet trains, which are subsequently hauled into the sugar factory.
The large 450hp LXD2 diesels travel the 200 meters from the station to the reception sidings of the factory where the loaded wagons are deposited, as seen on the left hand track. The standard gauge tankers of raw sugar, and sugar pulp waste in narrow gauge wagons are then taken away. The standard gauge mineral wagons on the right will have contained coal for use by the sugar factory.
The smaller Wls150 locos emerge from the factory and break the long trainsinto smaller sections for transport into the factory. This often requires the use of at least two of these locos.
Inside the factory, there is a large network of narrow gauge tracks still in use. A variety of locomotives can still be found.
The loco sheds and works are accessed via a hand operated turntable. Here, as well as further Wls150s, there are several older Wls50 locos, along with the more powerful LYD2 locos seen behind.
Disused steam locos can still be found in some locations, and at the end of a disused siding an old LAS type 0-6-0 was slowly rusting away in 1993. Other steam locos from this factory have been preserved at Sochaczew museum.