As of August, an agreement between railway authorities simplifies the arrival of trains to Poland28/8/2023|Press releasesIn mid August, the Polish Railway Transport Authority (Urzęd Transportu Kolejowego) and the Czech Railway Authority (Drážní úřad) signed an agreement on cooperation in the field of cross-border rail transport. The agreement aims to ensure joint supervision of railway undertakings and railway operators with cross-border activities and to establish rules for access to border stations in both countries. As part of the agreement, the existing stations located on passenger tracks were also redefined as border stations. "The agreement with Poland is the second cooperation agreement concluded by the Railway Authority. Intensive negotiations are also under way with Germany and Austria. The main purpose of the agreements is to promote safety and interoperability of railways and to simplify the movement of railway vehicles for railway undertakings when entering the border areas of neighbouring countries," says Jiří Kolář, director of the Railway Authority. The conclusion of cooperation agreements with the national safety authorities of neighbouring countries arises from the European Union directives on railway safety and interoperability of the railway system in the EU following the introduction of the 4th railway package. The agreements list the specific sections affected by border traffic. If a railway undertaking has been awarded the uniform safety certificate for the Czech Republic or Poland or is currently applying for one, it shall also apply for an extension of its area of operation to the border stations listed in the agreement. Although the extension request is made in the standard way via the One-Stop-Shop portal, the approval is only handled by the national railway authorities according to the terms of the agreement. Uniform safety certificates awarded prior to the effect date of the agreement shall be valid in accordance with the conditions at the time of their issue and every request for extension shall only supplement them. The cooperation agreement with Poland also covers joint supervision, which involves preparing a joint state supervision plan and exchanging information related to railway safety. In the agreement with Poland the defined sections are these lines: Chałupki – Bohumín os. n., ChałupkiBohumín – Vrbice, Cieszyn – Český Těšín, Głuchołazy – Jindřichov ve Slezsku, Głuchołazy – Mikulovice, Kamienna Góra – Královec, Międzylesie – Lichkov, Mieroszów – Meziměstí, Szklarska Poręba Górna – Harrachov, Zawidów – Višňová, Zebrzydowice – Český Těšín, Zebrzydowice – Petrovice u Karviné, Hrádek nad Nisou – Žitava– Varnsdorf – Hrádek nad Nisou The full text of the agreement is available for download on the Railway Authority website.