Tory w zgliszczach Warszawy. Rebuilding the Railway, the Railway Rebuilding

The exhibition is arranged inside the historic EW51 electric multiple unit carriage (formerly E91), itself one of the most important objects on show. Traces of wartime damage are still visible on its bodywork.

The museum describes the show as taking visitors back to the post-war capital - a city marked by the drama of war and the scale of its destruction, but also full of hope, determination and the strength of its inhabitants. It is a story about the people who, despite difficult conditions, took up the effort of rebuilding the city every day. The display covers both the extent of the destruction and the daily work of architects, labourers and residents.

On display are, among others, the cross-city railway line at Smolna street in 1945, the narrow-gauge line carrying away rubble in 1948, and photographs from the 1940s from the National Digital Archives. Location: the open-air park of the Station Museum, Towarowa 3.

Curator: Ewa Markert-Michalska.

What to expect

This is a small show inside a single railway carriage, not a gallery. The carriage stands in the museum’s open-air rolling stock park, so you see it as part of an ordinary visit, among the steam locomotives. The real draw is the vehicle itself: an electric multiple unit built in 1936 for Warsaw’s cross-city line, still carrying war damage on its bodywork.

The museum has been preparing the interior for displays since 2024. In a notice of 6 November 2024 it reported laying a floor, fitting technical lighting and, with a grant from the Mazovia regional government, installing new electrical and warning systems.

What to look out for:

• The bodywork - the wartime damage is visible from outside, before you step in.
• The cross-city line at Smolna Street, 1945 - a photograph of the route trains like this one ran on before the war.
• The rubble railway, 1948 - the small wagons used to haul rubble out of the ruined city.
• Photographs from the National Digital Archives - archive images from the 1940s.

Context

Warsaw’s cross-city line runs east-west under the city centre in a tunnel; it opened on 2 September 1933, was electrified in 1936, and the first electric trains entered service on 15 December that year. They were E91 units, built by Polish firms (Lilpop, Rau i Loewenstein, Cegielski, Zieleniewski) with British electrical equipment, and 76 were delivered by 1939. After the 1944 Warsaw Uprising the Germans blew up the line’s bridge over the Vistula, the tunnel, the Main Station and every viaduct. Many E91 sets were destroyed during the war. Survivors that were never rebuilt were renumbered EW51, and the cross-city line reopened on 23 June 1949.

Tickets and time

• Tickets: standard 25 PLN, reduced 16 PLN, family 75 PLN (two adults and up to three children). The price list shows no separate ticket for temporary shows, and this one stands in the open-air park covered by the regular ticket.
• Free entry: every Monday, and for children under 7. The museum also accepts the Warsaw Pass.
• Opening hours: daily except Tuesday; until 31 October 10:00-18:00, from 1 November to 31 March 9:00-17:00. The ticket desk stops selling 30 minutes before closing.
• Remaining closed days in 2026: 1 November and 24-26 December.
• Weather: the museum reserves the right to close the open-air park in bad weather, which closes this show too. On a wet or windy day, call the ticket desk first: +48 22 620 04 80 ext. 119.
• How long: add about 15 minutes to your museum visit for the carriage (our estimate; the museum gives none).
• Who it is for: anyone curious about post-war Warsaw or railway history. It is not worth crossing the city for on its own, but it is a good extra on a visit to the locomotive park, especially on a free Monday.
• Access: the open-air park is wheelchair accessible, but the museum does not say whether the carriage interior is. The museum also warns that the entrance ramp is too long to use alone: come with a companion or phone +48 22 620 04 80 ext. 106 in advance and staff will help you in.
• 27 September and 25 October: the museum also opens the interiors of its saloon car and artillery wagon, so there is more to see on those days.

What the press says

No reviews had appeared by 13 September 2026. Two Polish railway news sites announced the show, based on the museum’s information:

• Raport Kolejowy (20 April 2026, Zuzanna Rabinek): presents the railway as the backbone of the city’s rebuilding, used to haul away rubble and bring in building materials, and announces the opening for 24 April at 14:00 - article in Polish
• Raport Kolejowy (21 April 2026, Bartosz Jerzakowski): describes the show as a panel exhibition and adds a photograph of the Main Station ruins being demolished, with narrow-gauge wagons in view - announcement in Polish
• NaKolei.pl (21 April 2026, editorial team): pitches the show at both railway enthusiasts and anyone interested in Warsaw’s recent history - article in Polish

The museum’s director, Emilia Oleksiak, quoted by Raport Kolejowy and NaKolei.pl (our translation): “The railway played a fundamental role in this process.”

See also

• Station Museum (Warsaw Railway Museum) - the museum profile: a park of more than 50 rail vehicles, the EU07 simulator, directions and the story of Warszawa Główna station.
• Kresowe koleje losu. Marking 80 Years Since the Expatriation - the other carriage exhibition in the same park, on Poles forced out of the pre-war eastern borderlands after 1945; easy to see both on one visit.
• Warsaw Uprising Museum - how the destruction that had to be rebuilt came about; a five-minute walk from Towarowa Street.