The postal pipeline in Prague is unique. The war played an important role, the last straw was the flood
The foundations of the invention began in the 18th century by the inventor Denis Papin (1647-1714). Among other things, this Frenchman made it easier for housewives to cook food by supplying them with his pressure cooker – “papiňák”. In 1681 he obtained a royal patent for it in Paris. He also invented the steam cylinder, steam cannon, steam pump, steam river pump and submarine.
From there, there was only one step left to implement fast pneumatic or pipeline mail. The city’s first pipeline post was built thanks to the efforts of Phineas Balk and William Murdoch in London in 1853. Other European capitals soon followed: Paris, Rome, Hamburg, Naples, Berlin and Munich. But also more distant addresses such as Buenos Aires, Philadelphia, Chicago, Boston or Melbourne.
Heart of pipe mail
Photo: Collection of the Postal Museum
The Austrian postal and telegraph administration also swayed, even the first on the old continent to open a pipeline post in Vienna for the public. It happened on March 1, 1875.
Inspiration Vienna
The establishment of the Prague Pipeline Post dates back to August 6, 1887. The system of this post office in our country was based on the same technical solution as the encouragement in Vienna.
“At first, the postal administration operated the system for 12 years only for business needs,” said Martin Jahoda, the curator of the collections of the Prague Postal Museum. Specifically for the transport of telegrams from the main telegraph station on Malostranské náměstí at the Main Post Office in Jindřišská Street.
One of the longest routes led from the headquarters in Jindřišská Street to the post office in Libno and measured a total of 7.5 kilometers. The case offended her in just 12 minutes. Permanent journey to the Castle 8 minutes, to Dejvice about 10 minutes.
curator Martin Jahoda
Full operation for the transport of telegrams and express consignments to the public began on March 4, 1899. At the same time, special red mailbox boxes were placed on the streets of Prague. Their contents were collected every 20 minutes and sent to a specific destination.
The first lines of the Prague Pneumatic Post Office connected the Main Post Office in Jindřišská Street with both the already mentioned post office in Malá Strana and the post office on Malé náměstí in Dom u Rottů. In later years, a post office in Královské Vinohrady, Hrad or Smíchov was added – including 14 other private participants.
The turning point at the turn of the 1920s and 1930s
“A major turning point came between 1927 and 1932. A complete reconstruction took place, when more new routes were created and a powerful automatic system of the Berlin company Mix & Genest was installed,” Jahoda explained.
“At that time, the Prague Pipeline Post actually acquired the form and scope it still has today. Thanks to this, the pipeline post could transport tens of thousands of cases per month. At that time, almost half of the post and telegraph offices, including state institutions, such as Czechoslovak Radio and the Czechoslovak Press Office, were connected to the headquarters in Jindřišská Street, ”he added, adding that news and photographs were sent to the editorial dailies from there.
The Prague pipeline network from the turn of the 1920s and 1930s
Photo: Collection of the Postal Museum
The pipeline routes were made of steel tubes with an inner diameter of 6.5 cm and a thickness of 2.5 to 3 mm. In the mid-1980s, all these routes measured about 60 kilometers.
They crossed the Vltava on three bridges
The network of the Prague Pipeline Post consisted of a system of five star-shaped main routes, including switches. The Main Post Office building in Jindřišská Street was a place where all routes converged and where evidence of all consignments was kept, and the entire system was managed and monitored. Some particularly busy routes were two-pipe so that shipments could flow smoothly through the pipeline in both directions simultaneously.
The routes were mostly 80 to 100 cm below the surface and crossed the Vltava on three bridges. After the Legion Bridge, the Mánes Bridge and the Hlávka Bridge.
The pipeline post played an important role at the end of the Second World War, when it was suitable for supplying the besieged radio on Vinohradská třída.
“At that time, an average of 420,000 cases were sent per year, which transported 1.1 million telegrams and covered over two million kilometers. One of the longest routes led from the headquarters in Jindřišská Street to the post office in Libno and measured a total of 7.5 kilometers. The case offended her in just 12 minutes. The journey to the Castle took 8 minutes, to Dejvice about 10 minutes, “described the curator Jahoda.
Pipe mail stand with a manipulator inserting the case. Early 1930s.
Photo: Collection of the Postal Museum
The cases were able to develop speeds of up to 36 km per hour. The shortest route led to Exico and was literally just a few steps away, as the address was just across the street.
Snacks were also transported
The metal cases (originally celluloid, later duralumin and finally made of aluminum) were 5 centimeters in diameter, 20 cm long and carried up to 3 kilograms in weight. Mostly it was a coiled roll blanket with telegrams, but actually anything. Only hazardous substances that could damage the pipes were banned. So various documents, small items, even snacks were transported.
Pipe post office at the Prague 1 post office in Jindřiššská street. Year 1933.
Photo: Collection of the Postal Museum
The pipeline post played an important role at the end of the Second World War, when it was suitable for supplying the besieged radio on Vinohradská třída.
“The public could use the Prague pipeline post only until 1945,” Jahoda remarked. After that, according to him, it was used exclusively for business purposes.
The last blow? Flood
Back in the 1990s, it transported 9,000 cases per month, at which time about 20 companies used its services. However, traffic had a downward trend and gradually weakened. The last blow was the flood in 2002, which flooded the entire pipeline post and put a definitive end to its operation.
It is currently maintained in working order, but is not in use. In any case, it is a unique device that has served honestly for 115 years. And it has one important primacy: it is the only surviving urban pipeline system in the world. Denis Papin would definitely be happy.
Pneumatic mail undoubtedly has a number of advantages. It is environmentally friendly, reliable, safe, and its operation is relatively inexpensive. Thanks to certain improvements, I still use it successfully today. The installation of this system, of course in a modern design, is well used in banks, warehouses and shopping centers. It increases the reliability, speed and safety of transport.
She also found a great job at the Motol University Hospital. Here he successfully transports biological samples, drugs, small medical supplies, documentation between laboratories and doctors’ workplaces. The transport of samples of biological materials helps to significantly reduce the response time of laboratory tests, which is very important for compliance with the conditions for their processing. The pipeline operation operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Pipe post FN Motol
Photo: FNM archive
The pipeline routes at FNM measure 879 meters, have 316 stations and consist of 629 components. They are the largest system of their kind in Europe.