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Extraordinary measures will reduce traffic complications upon launching the new toll system

Odbor komunikace — Thu, 21 Nov 2019 12:09:52 GMT

As at 20 November 2019, the number of vehicles that have registered for the new toll system was around 251 thousand, approximately 55% of the totalexpected number of 458 thousand vehicles. Over the past week, CzechToll has shipped 60,000 new on-board units, while the total of on-board units already delivered to hauliers is 141,000. Unfortunately, despite the threat of large queues, hauliers continue to underestimate the obligation to register and the points of sale are far from busy.

“Our company has prepared the maximum possible measures to reduce the waiting time and reduce traffic complications when the toll system is launched. Beyond our contractual obligations, we have invested more than CZK 50 million excluding VAT,” said Matej Okáli, CzechToll CEO.

In addition to extensive organisational and information measures, the capacity of POSs at border crossings will be reinforced as much as possible. New workplaces are already being set up at the POSs, which will temporarily increase the capacity for registering and issuing new on-board units. Temporary registration points will also be established at the exits from the Slovak Republic.

“With regards to the capacity of the parking areas, but also the space possibilities of POSs, it is not possible to achieve the handling of thousands of vehicles coming from abroad without the on-board unit without waiting. There will be traffic complications, but we believe that to a much lesser extent than without the implemented measures,” added Matej Okáli.

The measures will significantly improve the expected traffic situation at critical border crossings. At the crossing of Lanžhot - Kúty the line of vehicles will be shortened from the expected 44 km to 12 km, at the crossing of Bohumín - Gorzyczki from 40 km to 11 km, at Český Těšín - Cieszyn from 22 km to 5 km. There is also a risk at the other crossings - queues of waiting lorries can temporarily form also inland at POSs and petrol stations.

Selection of measures taken to alleviate the expected traffic complications as a result of the low activity by small hauliers from abroad in registering for the new electronic toll system in the Czech Republic:

There are 41 temporary workstations created responsible for communicating with fuel card issuers (FCIs) and to ensure, as much as possible, the completion of the documents needed to dispatch on-board units to hauliers registered via the FCIs.
The free delivery of on-board units by post was extended to Hungary, Bulgaria, Lithuania, Romania and Estonia.
11 additional registration workstations were set up at selected border crossings operating 24/7, some of them within the territory of the Slovak Republic.
15 mobile registration points were set up to operate at border crossings operating 24/7 as well. Mobile registration vehicles deployed at parking areas may be moved between the parking areas in the event of the formation of queues.

The registration process at selected border crossings will be coordinated in detail:

Coordinators will be continuously present at the six border crossings to ensure that foreign hauliers are handled as smoothly as possible when registering and installing the new on-board unit;
the coordinators will be primarily at the border crossings of Bohumín - Gorzyczki, Český Těšín - Cieszyn, Lanžhot - Kúty, Mosty u Jablunkova - Svrčinovec, Nachod - Kudowa Zdrój and Krásný les - they can move to other locations if necessary;
the coordinators will be visibly marked with a reflective vest with the MYTOCZ logo;
drones will be involved in traffic management.

At petrol stations, resting areas and parking areas with a POS for registration, trained promoter teams will invite drivers in person to register (5 vehicles with staff).
In places with high incidence of lorries there are 7 mobile registration stations with staff.
The communication campaign has been significantly strengthened: the 'information campaign' has unfortunately become a 'persuasion campaign'.
Toll road administrators in Germany (BAG), Poland (GDDKIA), Austria (ASFINAG) and Slovakia (NDS) will be alerted about the risk situation.
Crisis communication is coordinated between the Ministry of Transport, the Road and Motorway Directorate of the Czech Republic (RSD CR), the Customs Administration of the Czech Republic, the Police of the Czech Republic and CzechToll.
Measures will be taken to coordinate crisis management of traffic between the RSD CR, the Customs Administration of the Czech Republic, the Police of the Czech Republic/Poland/Slovak Republic and CzechToll.

Hauliers can easily register on the website www.mytocz.eu; after paying the refundable deposit, they will receive the on-board unit by post. Registration is also possible through fuel card issuers, at more than 200 POSs and at 15 selected branches of the Czech Chamber of Commerce.

For complete information about the new toll system visit www.mytocz.eu or call the non-stop customer line +420 243 243 243.

Five weeks before the start of the new toll system 27% of the expected 458,000 cars are registered

Odbor komunikace — Wed, 06 Nov 2019 10:24:25 GMT

While larger hauliers have already registered 71% of the expected number of vehicles (specifically 109,000) under the post-pay toll mode, small hauliers have registered only less than 5% of vehicles (13,000). In terms of the number of registrations required, most vehicles that remain to be registered are from Poland (94,000), the Czech Republic (70,000) and Romania (28,000).

As part of the information campaign to launch the new toll system, CzechToll has contacted each haulier that operates more than 10 lorries by phone in the first month of the registration period, distributed a total of 230,000 information materials, sent 110,000 information letters by post and 60,000 by address e-mail. CzechToll is disseminating the necessary registration information with the help of industry organisations and over than seven million Internet users from the relevant target group have seen haulier-targeted online advertising.

Overview of countries with over 10 thousand vehicles without the necessary registration for the new toll system

Country	Remaining estimated number of vehicles for which registration is required (rounded to thousands)	Number of registered vehicles (rounded to thousands)	Percentage of vehicles already registered of the total expected number
Poland	94 000	24 000	20 %
Czech Republic	70 000	59 000	45 %
Romania	28 000	7 000	19 %
Germany	26 000	2 000	8 %
Hungary	16 000	7 000	32 %
Slovakia	15 000	11 000	42 %
Lithuania	13 000	3 000	18 %
Belarus	10 000	3 000	23 %

Vehicle registration is available online at www.mytocz.eu, through fuel card issuers, at more than 200 points of sale and at 15 selected branches of the Chamber of Commerce. In case of online registration, the haulier will receive a new on-board unit upon payment of the refundable deposit by post (free shipping applies to shipments within the Czech Republic, to Germany, Austria, Poland and Slovakia).

Complete information about the new toll system can be found at www.mytocz.eu or on the non-stop customer service line +420 243 243 243.

Only 5% of small carriers registered into the new toll system in one month, out of the large carriers it was one half

Odbor komunikace — Mon, 21 Oct 2019 13:38:49 GMT

Minister of Transport Vladimír Kremlík personally tried to register for the new toll system in the pre-paid regime today at the Prague branch of the Czech Chamber of Commerce. It took him less than four minutes to register one vehicle and pay the refundable deposit for the on-board unit.

“The system of registration at sales points is fast and simple. That is why I urge carriers not to wait any longer and obtain new on-board units as soon as possible. This week, I will address a similar appeal to transport ministers in countries where carriers have very limited interest in registrations so far,” said Vladimír Kremlík.
CzechToll is concerned about the lack of interest in registrations, especially in case of carriers from Poland. They currently have approximately 117,000 domestic on-board units in their vehicles. However, only 15,000 vehicles have been registered in the new system by now. This is one of the reasons why CzechToll strengthened the information campaign in Poland beyond the original budget at the end of last week. In terms of statistics, carriers from the Czech Republic (41,000 vehicles registered) and Slovakia (8,000 vehicles) are the best in meeting the obligation to register their vehicles.

“Unless small carriers start picking up new on-board units on a mass scale, they will spend unnecessary hours in the queues at the turn of November and December. I would like to remind all carriers once again that the system will be launched despite legal disputes and that it is not advisable to postpone registration. The carriers have only a few weeks left to obtain a new on-board unit without unnecessary stress and waiting in queues,” said Matej Okáli, CEO of CzechToll.

With regard to the expected surge of carriers at the turn of November and December, CzechToll, in cooperation with the operators of the points of sale, ensured the strengthening of personnel capacities in order to handle as many carriers as possible. However, he recommends carriers to register as soon as possible, pay the refundable deposit for the on-board unit and prepare its installation in the vehicle. The Czech Chamber of Commerce also provided maximum support for the registration process.

“Over 15 specialized workplaces of the Chamber of Commerce have so far registered XY vehicles. The carriers will not only get all the information from our employees, but they can also buy installation kits for fixed attachment of the on-board unit in the vehicle. A great benefit is the possibility to book a specific time of visit and thus avoid any waiting,” added Vladimír Dlouhý, President of the Czech Chamber of Commerce.

Vehicle registration is possible at more than 200 points of sale, at 15 selected branches of the Chamber of Commerce, through the issuers of fuel card or on-line at www.mytocz.eu. In case of on-line registration, the carrier will receive a new on-board unit by post upon payment of the refundable deposit (free shipping applies to shipments within the Czech Republic, to Germany, Austria, Poland and Slovakia).

The carriers can find complete information on the new toll system on the www.mytocz.eu

The government has approved a new National Space Plan

Odbor komunikace — Mon, 14 Oct 2019 16:54:02 GMT

The National Space Plan 2020 is a strategy of the Czech Republic for the development of capacities and capabilities of its industry and academic sphere in the field of space activities. The aim is to ensure competitiveness and maximize the return of public investment in space activities and related areas.

For these purposes we managed to allocate another CZK 275 mil. per year to strengthen the Czech Republic's participation in programmes of the European Space Agency (ESA). ESA programmes are the main instrument for the development of the Czech space industry and scientific excellence in space science.

The main objectives of the National Space Plan 2020 are:

1) Building Czech space capacities and capacities to increase excellence and competitiveness. We want to continue to create suitable environment that has helped Czech companies and the academic sphere keep up with current trends, be innovative, disruptive, excellent, create, protect and exploit intellectual property rights, and enhance cooperation between the academic sphere and industry while respecting their natural roles. We also want to create synergies between companies and between small and middle companies and large industry, maximize the return of investments, stimulate private investment in space activities, and stimulate and accelerate transfer of technology and knowledge. We emphasize the common use of satellite systems in everyday applications.

2) An active position in international relations should help increase the visibility of the Czech Republic. Strengthening bilateral cooperation with space powers, in particular from among European countries. The Czech Republic should try to help looking for generally acceptable solutions that would support international cooperation.

Space activities are all state, industrial and scientific activities that aim to exploit the possibilities and opportunities that the space offers. These include satellite navigation, satellite telecommunications, Earth observation, space transport (especially launchers), observation of the near surroundings of the Earth and space weather, robotic and manned space exploration, space science (all disciplines of space-based astronomical observations, microgravity research, effects of space environment) or applications and services related to the use of the collected data.

The Czech Republic implements most of its space activities through the European Space Agency (ESA), which it joined as a full member at the end of 2008. Since then, there has been a significant increase in the participation of Czech companies in space projects. Nowadays (2019), Czech companies are recognized members of international supply chains in the production of launchers, satellites and ground segments.
Without participation in ESA projects it is practically impossible to get into the supply chains of e.g. Airbus, Thales, OHB or other large companies.

In the period of 2008 – 2018 Czech companies and universities implemented 350 projects.

Since 2011, the Ministry of Transport has been responsible for space activities. It pays a vast majority of the Czech Republic's contributions to ESA and creates conditions for the development of space activities in the Czech Republic.

Winter measures on the D1: More rest areas for trucks, gritters and variable traffic signs

Odbor komunikace — Tue, 24 Sep 2019 14:12:05 GMT

“Variable traffic signs that work with a combination of traffic and meteorological data should also contribute to traffic control. The Road and Motorway Directorate will install the signs on the territory of the Vysočina Region since December as a part of their pilot operation,” says Minister of Transport Vladimír Kremlík. The purpose of this measure is to regulate the traffic flow in time in order to ensure its continuity.

Since the last meeting in July, we have taken many concrete steps. There are reserves in the awareness of drivers, however, the Ministry of Transport of theCzech Republic and the Directorate of Roads and Motorways are working intensively to improve this. “We are trying to get ready for winter as much as possible and, using the experience from the interventions of all components of the integrated rescue system on the D1, to minimize the impacts of adverse weather affecting the operation of the motorway and the life of not only the inhabitants of our region,” Jiří Běhounek, President of the Vysočina Region, describes the content of the meeting.

The meeting was also attended by representatives of the Regional Road Administration and Maintenance and the integrated rescue system. Individual IRS units will be able to use new routes to exit the motorway in emergency situations. It will be possible to exit the motorway via rest areas or using service exits.

Transport ministers in Brussels addressed the issue of reducing greenhouse gas emissions in transport

Odbor komunikace — Mon, 23 Sep 2019 11:59:11 GMT

“The Czech Republic is fully aware of the fact that transport is one of the main polluters of our planet. In the field of land transport, emphasis must be placed on supporting urban and suburban public transport systems. Greater use of rail transport depends on the decarbonisation of transport and the development of a multi-modal freight transport solution,” said Deputy Minister of Transport Tomáš Čoček. The ministers mentioned the topic of transport decarbonisation during the discussion with European Transport Commissioner Violeta Bulc and Vice-President of the European Investment Bank, Andrew McDowell. The Finnish Minister of Transport also reminded the European Council's call for a climate-neutral EU.

For aviation, the transport ministers addressed European and international emission reduction instruments. Sustainable aviation fuel is also an important measure. “Europe should focus on supporting further development of these instruments, in particular through funding in the field of science and research,” adds Tomáš Čoček. Maritime transport, which accounts for 80% of total international trade, was also discussed, and there is an endeavour to shift the movement of goods from land and rail transport to inland waterway transport even more.

Rules for flights between the Czech Republic and Russia agreed

Odbor komunikace — Fri, 13 Sep 2019 15:08:59 GMT

The aviation authorities of the Czech Republic and the Russian Federation dealt with mutual relations in the field of air transport for the upcoming period in Prague today. Both parties agreed that, in accordance with the existing contractual framework, the capacity on the transport market of Zhukovsky Airport – Prague Airport may increase from the summer 2020 operation period.

At the same time, the possibility of using existing trans-Siberian overflight routes on the Prague – Seoul route for Czech air carriers will be permanently confirmed and expanded from the same operating period. Until then, the existing scope of operations will be maintained.

The preparation of the electronic vignette is under way. The Ministry is clear on how the checks will be carried out

Odbor komunikace — Thu, 05 Sep 2019 12:21:56 GMT

“The new electronic vignette system will bring greater comfort to drivers. The vignette can be bought at any time in the e-shop, mobile application or also in a network of points of sale. For the state, the electronic vignette means an annual saving of up to CZK 100 million for printing, distributing or destroying vignettes. In addition, drivers will get rid of the inconvenience of sticking a paper vignette on the car's windshield and and then removing it,” said Minister Kremlík. The Ministry of Transport plans that the sales of the new electronic vignettes will start in December 2020.

Will there be any exceptions?

All vehicles with at least four wheels will have to buy an electronic vignette when using a toll road, while their maximum permitted weight must not exceed 3.5 tonnes. Vehicles powered by electricity, hydrogen or in combination with other fuels shall be exempt from the obligation to pay toll roads (if the CO2 value does not exceed 50 g/km) and also historic vehicles fitted with a special license plate and historic vehicle license. This also applies to vehicles carrying persons holding a ZTP or ZTP/P card and at the same time being the operators of those vehicles or persons close to the operator.

The same rules will continue to apply to vehicles operated by homes for persons with disabilities if they are used for the carriage of such persons and also to vehicles used for the carriage of dependent children who are being treated for cancer or haemoblastosis. The exemption also applies to organizations and public authorities defined in the law, e.g. the Police of the Czech Republic, Customs Administration, toll road administrators, integrated rescue system components, etc.

How the checks will be performed

“The Police of the Czech Republic and the Customs Administration will be responsible for checks on toll roads in road traffic by means of cameras placed in vehicles, or on a tripod next to the road or at toll gates. The cameras will scan the license plates of passing vehicles and this will make the supervision work much more effective,” explains Zbyněk Hořelica, Director of the State Fund for Transport Infrastructure. The system will then immediately verify the validity of the electronic vignette in the database or determine whether the vehicle is exempt from payment. Control authorities will thus be able to respond flexibly to possible violations of the law, i.e. non-payment of the time-based charges.

The Ministry of Transport also expects to use toll gates that will not be used by CzechToll for its purposes in order to perform checks. The amendment to Act No. 13/1997 Coll., On Roads, expects to use control posts to increase the effectiveness of mobile control and also for statistical purposes, such as monitoring the rate of potential offences.

Funds from the sale of electronic vignettes will be the income of the State Fund for Transport Infrastructure and will continue to be used for repairs and to build new road constructions.

Sunday's ban on driving trucks will be extended, there will be exceptions

Odbor komunikace — Tue, 27 Aug 2019 14:56:54 GMT

Truck driving on Sunday was an important item on the agenda. There is a consensus that the trucks will not be allowed on the roads until 10 p.m. on Sunday. However, trucks will be able to finish their journey within the Czech Republic or until the end of transport. This will put the Czech Republic in line with the neighbouring countries in the field of driving trucks on Sunday. Trucks passing through our territory is related to building rest areas. The plan is to open approximately 241 parking spaces for trucks this year, 119 parking spaces will be added in 2020, 233 parking spaces will be added in 2021 and 308 new parking spaces will be built in 2022. Currently, the motorway network lacks approximately 1,400 parking spaces for trucks.

“We are the only country that allows driving trucks on Sundays until 1 p.m. These ideas and suggestions will be the subject of negotiations between the government and the Chamber of Deputies, but we have agreed that this needs to be adjusted. It would not be possible to drive trucks since midnight on Sunday any more, they would be allowed to go again only after 10 p.m.,” said Andrej Babiš.

The next point was a ban on trucks' overtaking. The proposed option would not ban overtaking in general, but only on selected sections. Now the police and the Road and Motorway Directorate are waiting for possible solutions. They should be ready by the end of this week and then the selected sections will be fitted with traffic signs. The police have already tried to check the ban on overtaking in the winter months, and now these checks are planned to be introduced all year round.

Increased supervision by the police, especially in risk areas, was another topic of the meeting. Nowadays, there is one patrol for non-stop service and one daytime regime patrol at each highway police department. The goal is to add at least one daytime patrol in order to increase responsiveness of the police. New departments should also be created along with the development of the motorway network. Thanks to the development material of the Police of the Czech Republic, the number of traffic police officers is granted to be increased by several hundred.

The issue of control posts was also addressed. At the moment, approximately 44 control post have been selected on the border. There was also a consensus during the negotiations on the need to set up a large control post on the D1. This would allow the police and the Customs to carry out sufficient checks.

“We agreed to identify the most important sections. This post should also be on the most critical section near Humpolec,” added the Prime Minister.

As far as penalizing of offences is concerned, a large number of foreign drivers who commit a traffic offence currently travel on Czech roads. The fine is now enforced by the Customs Administration. The aim is to interconnect the databases of the Police of the Czech Republic and the Customs Administration, which will allow police officers to find out if the driver has any unpaid fines. If the driver fails to pay the fine, his license plate should be removed from his vehicle. Therefore, he will not be able to continue driving until he has paid the fine.

The transformation of the Road and Motorway Directorate into a more flexible organization has begun

Odbor komunikace — Fri, 26 Jul 2019 11:22:11 GMT

“I want this change, supported by the Road and Motorway Directorate, to take place within a reasonable time frame and with as few legislative changes as possible. The necessary continuity must also be maintained, not only in relation to construction, but also to existing employees. The aim is to have an efficient highway construction and maintenance company that is competitive on the labour market,” says Transport Minister Vladimír Kremlík.

The forthcoming transformation should allow for a better adaptability of the “new” company to the changed situation in the area of available resources (national and European), especially as regards the use of financing from private sources and other private and public financial instruments, such as the upcoming National Development Fund. In the area of personnel, the change should give more space to managerial control of the organization and allow even more variability for remuneration of employees and recruitment of other experts. The Road and Motorway Directorate must be an attractive employer who will be a competitive choice over the construction and design companies it is supposed to supervise.

“Now the Ministry of Transport has to undergo a process whereby we assess the various possible options of the legal form of the newly formed entity and prepare a material about which we will inform the members of the government in the autumn,” Minister Kremlík describes the current stage of preparations.

The main reasons for changing the Road and Motorway Directorate are:

to ensure the interconnection of revenues and expenditures related to the management of a selected part of the transport infrastructure and to enable, through external sources, to optimize cash flow according to construction needs without a direct link to the state budget (other private sources, loans, etc.);

to ensure the possibility of contractual salaries for experts;

to ensure a standardized view of the company's financial performance (business corporation model with standardized reporting).

The aim of the initiated process is to find optimal organizational structures of the system of planning, financing, maintenance, renewal and construction of transport infrastructure which will make it possible to use the recommended and sustainable mix of financial resources economically, efficiently and effectively and to adapt their amount to the requirements for building new infrastructure. The transformed organization must be process-driven and project-oriented.

Two new things in transport: Carriers can get ready for a single ticket and an electronic vignette

Odbor komunikace — Fri, 12 Jul 2019 11:25:04 GMT

Electronic Vignette

The approved video tolling system will be functioning from December 2020 and its implementation is planned for 2021. The user of a toll road with a vehicle up to 3.5 tons will be able to pay the fee not only at physical points of sale, but also through purchases in an e-shop (via PC, telephone, etc.). Therefore, drivers will not need to have any form of paper vignette in the car, everything will be in an electronic form, they will only receive a proof of purchase and they will carry this payment receipt with them.

As well as today, it will be possible to buy 10-day, monthly and annual vignettes.

The goal is to increase the comfort of drivers, electronic vignettes will prevent counterfeit and automated checks will ensure that drivers do not drive on motorways without paying the relevant fee. The money from vignettes goes back into repairs and new road constructions through the State Fund for Transport Infrastructure.

Single Tariff System

The full launch of the system and the involvement of all rail carriers is expected in December 2020, which is in line with the text of the draft Law on Railways discussed by the Chamber of Deputies today. However, the Ministry of Transport assumes that if the carriers are ready, pilot operation on selected routes may already start in the first half of 2020.

The single tariff system, using the trade name “OneTicket,” will offer tickets that allow passengers to choose from a number of carriers, easily use connections and travel across the country with a single ticket and under uniform tariff conditions. It will be a system which will allow flexible tickets to be sold between any two points of the Czech railway network, in addition to discount tickets (which will continue to exist).

During the first half of this year, contractual documents were finalized in cooperation with carriers and integrated transport systems, defining the rights and obligations of the entities involved regarding the distribution of tickets, the provision of transport and the settlement of mutual liabilities and receivables. At the same time, after consulting the carriers and their technical operators, the technical conditions for the functioning of the system were set.

The creation of a single ticket system is one of the programme priorities of the current government in the field of transport.

For more details, visit https://www.oneticket.cz/.

Agreement between the Czech Republic and Russia: All flights will be in operation during the summer

Odbor komunikace — Thu, 04 Jul 2019 15:25:32 GMT

We do not want to block air traffic between the two countries during the main holiday season and reduce the comfort of passengers.

We are reacting to the press release from Tuesday, when we informed about a temporary disagreement between the aviation authorities of both parties, unilateral restriction of the right to fly over the Siberian part of the Russian Federation territory for Czech Airlines on the Prague – Seoul route and the subsequent reaction of the Czech side, which limited the flights of Russian airlines to the Czech Republic (see details in the press release from Tuesday).

Flights operated by Russian airlines permitted again; the Czech Republic and Russian want to agree

Odbor komunikace — Tue, 02 Jul 2019 08:09:58 GMT

The situation has been currently discussed intensively both with the Russian side and with air carriers.

In the morning of 2 July 2019, the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation permitted flights operated by České aerolinie, a.s. until 7 July 2019. Immediately afterwards, the Ministry of Transport of the Czech Republic commenced a reciprocal action against Russian air carriers. As a result, the flights will be permitted until 7 July 2019 too. Russian carriers' flights are being permitted on a continuous basis, therefore there should be no major traffic disruption.

In the interim, both sides will actively negotiate to reach an agreement. The Czech side does not intend to block the air traffic between the two countries, but it must defend legitimate interests of its air carriers.

In this connection, the Ministry of Transport of the Czech Republic regrets the inconvenience and complications experienced by passengers, which, however, was caused by the initial decision of the Russian side. The Czech side will aim to minimise the negative impacts on the passengers

A new section of the D3 motorway was opened and will stay free of charge until the end of the year

Odbor komunikace — Mon, 24 Jun 2019 09:51:42 GMT

To be able to efficiently use this new motorway section, also a 1-km section from the adjacent D3 construction Ševětín – Borek had to be built. So a total of 9.1 km of a brand new motorway was opened today.

"I would like to thank ŘSD, the motorway administration organisation, the State Fund for Transport Infrastructure (SFDI), building contractors and local self-governments for their cooperation, which resulted in the opening of this new motorway section," said the 1st deputy to the transport minister Tomáš Čoček. "The new motorway section will improve traffic safety and increase the travel speed. It will stay free of charge until the end of this year," he added.

The motorway section has 8.1 km. It includes four motorway bridges and one pedestrian underpass. The Bošilec – Ševětín section will be primarily used as the replacement of existing road I/3 that could no longer take the traffic loads. The new motorway section will bring higher convenience for drivers but also improve safety.

Another 30.5 km of the D3 motorway are still under construction even after the opening of the Bošilec – Ševětín section. This includes the České Budějovice bypass – section D3 0310/II Hodějovice-Třebonín with a length of 12.6 km and section 0310/I Úsilné-Hodějovice with 7.2 km. Another motorway between Ševětín and Borek is still under construction, so the one kilometre opened today was just the first part. Drivers should be able to start using this section in the spring of 2020.

When completed, the D3 will become the artery road between Prague and the South Bohemian Region and connect to the motorway network in Austria. Its length will be 170 km and it will cover the route Prague – České Budějovice – Austria. The whole D3 motorway will belong to the E55 European road coming from Scandinavia and crossing our territory towards Greece.

Together this this section, ŘSD has currently 247.1 km of motorways and category 1 roads under construction, of which motorways are 131.4 km. Besides the D3, the D35 motorway is another motorway where works are progressing most: 27 km of motorway are under construction at the moment. It is followed by D11 where 22 km are in progress. Modernisation of the D1 continues and there are construction sites on 51.9 km on this motorway. New category I road sections are 63.8 km at the moment. Check the current progress on the ŘSD interactive map.

Also freight trains shall use the high-speed rail line from Prague to Dresden

Odbor komunikace — Fri, 14 Jun 2019 14:23:26 GMT

"We are supporting a shift from trucks onto the rail. I will appreciate if the new rail line between Prague and Dresden can be used for freight as well," said the Czech minister Vladimír Kremlík.

According to the Saxon minister Martin Dulig, a joint declaration of Germany, the Czech Republic and Austria about the connection of Vienna, Prague and Berlin with a high-speed rail line should be signed this autumn. This project shall connect the TEN-T Trans-European Transport Network of the North and the South.

Both ministers also discussed regional railway connections such as the extension of the rail line in the 5-km route between Rumburk and Seifhennersdorf that will connect to the existing railway link with Dolní Poustevny, Sebnitz and Děčín. Saxony is now preparing the feasibility study.

Allowing navigation on river Elbe was another big topic. The Saxon minister Dulig said that regular mud removal and cleaning of the Elbe river bottom is the priority that shall add more navigation days. Minister Kremlík said that he wants to submit a water transport concept to the Czech government that also contains a plan for the Děčín navigation section.

The Czech Technology Agency opened a new opportunity for transportation-related research

Odbor komunikace — Thu, 13 Jun 2019 08:57:44 GMT

"The Ministry of Transport managed to prepare the DOPRAVA 2020+ programme in cooperation with the Czech Technology Agency that had been missing in the portfolio of national programmes supporting applied research. Through this programme we can now support research projects from the transportation industry for which there had been no compact financial instrument in the past. This will now boost the development in the entire sector." said Vladimír Kremlík, the transport minister.

The programme seeks to support applied research projects to further develop the transportation sector in terms of sustainability, safety and availability. Projects targeting smart traffic solutions, smart cities, transport space data and projects in automation, digitalisation and satellite navigation systems. The programme is relevant not only on the national level, but actually follows up current European objectives.

Research organisations, enterprises and other entities can design their projects and, if successful, investigate them on their own or in cooperation with other participants.

Project applications can be filed from 13 June until 13 August 2019. The subsequent evaluation period will end on 31 January, 2020. Public funding amounting to CZK 500 million was allocated to this first competition. The maximum amount of state support that can be allocated per project is CZK 50 million. The maximum support level is 80% of project costs. Project duration was defined between 12 and 48 months. These public competitions will be announced on an annual basis until 2023. Expected expenses of the programme for all public competitions, as scheduled, funded from the state budget for the defined period is CZK 1.95 billion.

"The DOPRAVA 2020+ programme is the key instrument for the future and development of the transportation field and reflects the needs of the whole society. The outcomes of the projects that will be supported will contribute to an acceleration of the technological development and the knowledge base of the Czech Republic and will boost its competitiveness", Petr Konvalinka, the TA ČR chairman, added.

Detailed information on the 1st public competition under the DOPRAVA 2020+ programme will be provided at an information seminar that will take place on 26 June at 10:30 in the TA ČR head office.

Ode dneška je možné podávat návrhy výzkumných projektů z oblastí životního prostředí a dopravy do 2 veřejných soutěži #programDOPRAVA2020+ a #programProstrediProZivot Více ℹ️ https://t.co/Cvwm9PKbEV pic.twitter.com/zkRm3w8qc2
— TACR (@TACR_cz) 13. června 2019

„Program DOPRAVA 2020+ je klíčovým nástrojem pro budoucnost a rozvoj dopravního sektoru s reflexí potřeb celé společnosti. Výsledky projektů, které budou v rámci něj podpořeny, přispějí k akceleraci technologického i znalostního rozvoje České republiky a k růstu její konkurenceschopnosti“, doplnil Petr Konvalinka, předseda TA ČR.

Podrobné informace k 1. veřejné soutěži Programu DOPRAVA 2020+ získají zájemci na informačním semináři, který se uskuteční 26. června 2019 od 10:30 hod v sídle TA ČR.

Electronic motorway coupons will start in 2021, SFDI committed

Odbor komunikace — Fri, 31 May 2019 10:09:31 GMT

"SFDI is committed to launch digital motorway coupons in 2021. The fund head Zbyněk Hořelica assured me today that would meet the deadline. We will eventually come closer to other European countries where drivers no longer place a physical sticker on their windshields," said minister Vladimír Kremlík right after the meeting.

The legal framework for the motorway coupons is provided by act 13/1997 Coll. on roads, the amendment of which currently needs to pass the second round in the parliament.

Besides motorway coupons, the transport minister made himself familiar with the organisational structure of the state fund and together with the fund head they were discussing the funding of category II and III roads and the budget for the next year.

"I want to bring as much funds as possible into transport infrastructure. The good news is that the continuation of the Operational Programme Transportation is ensured. And I will also seek to get more funding from the national budget," the transport minister Vladimír Kremlík added.

Minister Kremlík: In ship transport we need to eliminate bottlenecks on rivers

Odbor komunikace — Fri, 24 May 2019 11:56:47 GMT

"Today I saw the current work progress on the modernisation of the Vltava waterway in the Štvanice lock chamber that is the second most used lock chamber in Prague. The building contractors and ŘVC management assured me that the works proceed by the time schedule and the upgrade will be finished at the beginning of the next year" the transport minister Vladimír Kremlík said and added that ŘVC wants to have the navigation route extended to 556 km from 2023.

"I can gratefully confirm that minister Kremlík considers the construction of waterways as part of the transport network of the Czech Republic. We agreed that bottlenecks need to be eliminated. This primarily applies to the construction of the Děčín navigation section, extension of navigation on river Elbe to Pardubice and modernisation of the Vltava waterway between Prague and Mělník. The modernisation involves two lock chambers: the Hořín lock chamber and the lock chambers here on Štvanice," the head of the waterways organisation Lubomír Fojtů added.

The head of the transport sector was also discussing with the ŘVC management the waterways concept for the following years and the Danube – Odra – Elbe navigation corridor.“ I heard the opinions of the head, Lubomír Fojtů, on these topics. We are now working at the ministry on new materials that I will submit to the government for discussion until the end of this September," minister Kremlík added.

The transport minister welcomed at today's meeting that the waterways head office is also preparing projects for recreational navigation. They include for example the extension of navigation routes on the Baťa channel and construction of a basic docks network for small boats on river Elbe.

The V4 is making preparations for high-speed rail lines

Odbor komunikace — Tue, 21 May 2019 15:26:13 GMT

The transport minister Vladimír Kremlík supported the construction of high-speed rail lines and said we would sign a joint memorandum on behalf of the Czech Republic. "High-speed rail lines are the priority for me and the Czech Republic. The costs and benefits of a new connection between Warsaw, Katowice, Ostrava, Brno, Bratislava and Budapest will be verified in the feasibility study that will foresee European funds as well," the transport minister Vladimír Kremlík said after the meeting. The feasibility study will be assigned by the Hungarian side and will be based on past and current work in the other three countries.

The transport ministers also stated they were against cuts of road infrastructure funding in the next seven-year budget period of the European Union, i.e. for 2021-2027. "We will fight for keeping the funds at least on the current level", the Slovak transport minister Arpád Érsek said.

The Slovak minister also requests that European countries follow a joint procedure to accelerate collection of fines – unpaid motorways fees across borders. The EU regulation saying that data can be obtained from foreign car registries will be updated for this purpose. This is currently impossible, so the states are not able to get the essential data about the use of vehicles registered abroad.

Construction of first high-speed rail lines will start in 2025

Odbor komunikace — Mon, 13 May 2019 10:20:09 GMT

SŽDC said at today's meeting that negotiations are under way with Société nationale des chemins de fer français (SNCF) regarding the preparation of high-speed rail lines in the Czech Republic. This partnership shall lead to the creation of a manual for SŽDC how to design high-speed rail lines and so reduce the preparation time by up to five years.

"Negotiations are now starting with the French side regarding the correct construction of tunnels, bridges and traction lines on high-speed rail lines following the example of TGV. And construction of the first high-speed rail lines should start in 2025," says the transport minister Vladimír Kremlík.

The transport minister was also interested in investments in repairs of railway station buildings. SŽDC will invest one billion crowns in them this year and one billion next year. Between 2017 and 2022 about CZK 8.4 billion will have been spent on these upgrades.

Pavol Kováčik becomes the new head of ŘSD and his job is to speed up construction projects

Odbor komunikace — Fri, 03 May 2019 10:20:25 GMT

"What I expect from the new general director are new impulses for more efficient work at ŘSD, very good planning of transport projects, correct setting of contracts and consequent supervision of compliance. Plus construction quality also matters a lot. Efficient and effective management and control mechanisms need to be put is place and a general transformation of ŘSD should also be considered," says the transport minister Vladimír Kremlík.

The new head Pavol Kováčik should also focus on emergencies, their handling and communication. "Drivers must have enough information in case of accidents or obstacles, so that they can immediately react to the situation. Faster clearing of accident sites needs to be discussed with the regions and the police as well," Vladimír Kremlík adds.

In his recent job of Pavol Kováčik was the chairman of the board of the State Fund for Transport Infrastructure SFDI, at the Ministry of Transport he was member of an expert team for the preparation of the PPP D4 project and in the past he was the head of investments at the National Motorways Company and chairman of the board of Utility Structures in Košice, Slovakia. He graduated from the University of Transport in Žilina, Slovakia, and from the University of Economics and Management Prague.

The transport minister thanked the departing head Jan Kroupa for his long-term work in the organisation. "I would like to thank the existing director for the 254 km of motorways and category I roads that are currently under construction. I appreciate his work and the stability of ŘSD and hope he stays working in our sector," the transport minister Vladimír Kremlík adds.

There are currently 140 km of motorways under construction as green field investments, another 52 km of the D1 motorway are being modernised and 63 km of new category I roads are under construction. While construction of the Budweis bypass and the D35 between Opatovice nad Labem and Časy is under way, works still need to be done on the ring road around Prague and start of the first PPP project on the D4. Preparations of the central-Bohemian part of D3 need to be accelerated as well.

The new transport minister Vladimír Kremlík took over office

Odbor komunikace — Tue, 30 Apr 2019 16:50:50 GMT

Later in the afternoon minister Kremlík arrived in the ministry building together with prime minister Andrej Babiš. They were welcomed here by the departing minister Dan Ťok who gave the handover report to minister Kremlík where he summed up the current agenda at the Ministry of Transport. Minister Kremlík then met the different deputies and heads of organisations that report to ŘSD.

"The first thing I want to focus on is faster preparation and construction of core traffic infrastructure. An act on the acceleration of traffic infrastructure construction is currently in the law-making process and must be finalised," minister Kremlík said.

Vladimír Kremlík graduated from the Faculty of Law of Charles University. Before his appointment as head of sector, he had worked as a deputy for Legal service and assets management with the Office for Government Representation in Property Affairs.

On social media you can follow minister Kremlík on Facebook and Twitter.

Dnešek byl poněkud netypický 😉

Jmenování na @HradOfficial proběhlo v pohodové atmosféře 🇨🇿 a moje první tiskovka na @min_dopravy taky.

Už se těším na nové kolegy i kolegyně, jak se společně pustíme do práce 🙂

A Vás o tom v 280 znacích budu pravidelně informovat. pic.twitter.com/7MmsSrnOeM
— Vladimír Kremlík (@KremlikVladimir) 30. dubna 2019

Minister Ťok kick-started the construction of the second section of České Budějovice bypass

Odbor komunikace — Wed, 17 Apr 2019 10:33:40 GMT

"I am happy that we are starting the construction of the second part of České Budějovice bypass within such a short period of time. The traffic situation for the residents of České Budějovice is far from easy and I believe that it will significantly improve after the bypass has been opened," says Dan Ťok.

The 20km bypass of České Budějovice is split in two building sections: construction of D3 0310/I Úsilné-Hodějovice with a length of 7.2 km (which is now starting) and D3 0310/II Hodějovice-Třebonín with a length of 12.6 km (construction started on 29 March). Construction of a tunnel that is almost 1 km long will be part of the Úsilné – Hodějovice section. Both bypass sections will be completed simultaneously.

On the D3 motorway sections D3 0309/I Bošilec-Ševětín with 8.1 km and scheduled opening in July 2019 and D3 0309/II Ševětín-Borek with 10.7 km are currently under construction. The D3 motorway is the longest piece of motorway under construction in the Czech Republic: almost 40 new km are being built.

Together with section Úsilné – Hodějovice, a total of 255 km of motorways and category I roads are under construction. Of this 140 km are on the green field, 52 km is the D2 modernisation and 63 km are category I roads. Check the current progress on the ŘSD interactive map.

GPS navigation will be newly available for drivers in Brno tunnels as well

Odbor komunikace — Thu, 11 Apr 2019 13:37:42 GMT

During April the beacons will be installed to Pisárecký, Královopolský and Hlinky tunnel and covered roads Záhřebská and Voroněžská. One last tunnel – Husovický – will be equipped with Waze Beacons after its reconstruction is over (end of August 2019).

So far, the beacons are used by Waze drivers only, but the technology is open, free and available for other applications as well, including other commercially available navigation systems.

How does it work?

Waze Beacons are small plastic boxes glued to the tunnel walls every 40 meters. Each box contains a small Bluetooth module that transmits an identification code of each device and there is no need to connect to the device. During a drive through a tunnel, a smartphone detects present beacons and calculates the location inside the tunnel based on the strength of the signal. The Waze Beacon is operational as long as the built-in battery supplies power. The estimated lifespan of the beacons in Brno is up to 6 years.

Increased safety, better traffic flow

Not only brings the exact tunnel location better navigation to the users but it also increases safety. The Beacons enable Waze users to detect deviations from the standard traffic flow. Drivers can share warnings among each other when there is a hazard inside the tunnel such as a stalled car, object on the road or a pothole. More information can be shared once requested.

The European Commission approved another CZK 4 billion as a contribution to two another large-scale projects

Odbor komunikace — Tue, 02 Apr 2019 13:32:11 GMT

We notified readers about the opening of the railway section Rokycany – Pilsen in December 2018. Travelling from Prague to Pilsen will be cut to one hour and 14 minutes thanks to this railway project that also involves the longest railway tunnel in the Czech Republic.

"Pilsen belongs to places that shall be reachable from Prague by train within one hour. And we can how closer to that again. Another objective is to improve our train connection with Germany thanks to a speed increase planned between Prague and Munich. The recent decision of the Federal Ministry of Transport about the re-classification of electrification and modernisation of the German part of this connection, which now belongs to top priorities in the Federal Transportation Routes Plan, will allow for this" said the transport minister Dan Ťok.

The Třinec bypass is another project that was supported. The 11-km section Nebory – Oldřichovice – Bystřice is part of the I/11 road and significantly relieved the inhabitants of Třinec and Vendryně. The bypass is also an important route connecting the Czech Republic with Slovakia and Poland.

Modern transport infrastructure in the Czech Republic with the support of EU funds

The transport infrastructure in the Czech Republic has been built and modernised with significant EU contributions. During the last eleven years more than 530 projects were supported from the Operational Programme Transportation and the total EU contribution since 2004 has exceeded CZK 180 billion.

The ministry will support research and innovations in the transportation sector with CZK 2 billion, applications can be filed from June on

Odbor komunikace — Mon, 25 Mar 2019 15:25:23 GMT

Provided under four separate calls, two billion Czech crowns are waiting for applicants in the scheme. The first call will be announced in June 2019 and support per one project will reach up to CZK 50 million. The DOPRAVA 2020+ applied research, experimental development and innovations scheme in the transportation sector will be administered by the Technological Agency of the Czech Republic. Under this scheme, the ministry wants to support projects targeting sustainable and safe transportation, infrastructure, accessible and interoperable transportation and automation, digitalisation, navigation and satellite systems. The scheme will be implemented between 2020 and 2026, i.e. for seven years.

Vláda schválila 3 nové programy, které nabídnou státní podporu výzkumných projektů ve výši 15 mld. Kč.
🔹TREND - @mpo_tweetuje
🔹Prostředí pro život - MŽP
🔹DOPRAVA 2020+ - @min_dopravy
Poskytovatelem a realizátorem všech 3 bude TA ČR 🔜 https://t.co/pLUlpInHKh pic.twitter.com/SUGiJ0rmAR
— TACR (@TACR_cz) 27. března 2019

The D3 motorway will see the most advanced stage of progress, because almost 40 km will be under construction simultaneously

Odbor komunikace — Mon, 04 Mar 2019 09:24:42 GMT

"On Friday, 29 Mach 2019, we are officially starting the construction of the České Budějovice bypass in section Hodějovice – Třebonín. Construction of the first part of the bypass from Úsilné will start this year still. This will turn the D3 motorway into the biggest motorway construction site in the Czech Republic and almost 40 km of the new motorway, of which eight will be opened this year, could be under construction at once," says the transport minister Dan Ťok.

The 20km bypass of České Budějovice is split in two building sections: construction of D3 0310/I Úsilné-Hodějovice with a length of 7.2 km and D3 0310/II Hodějovice-Třebonín with a length of 12.6 km. Sections D3 0309/I Bošilec-Ševětín with 8.1 km and scheduled opening in July 2019 by the latest and a section D3 0309/II Ševětín-Borek with 10.7 km are currently under construction.

👷‍♂️⚒🏗Sezona dopravních staveb se začíná rozjíždět. Dnes jsme zahájili výstavbu nového úseku dálnice D3 mezi Hodějovicemi a Třebonínem. Celý úsek bude zároveň sloužit jako obchvat Českých Budějovic a výrazně tak ulehčí dopravě v jihočeské metropoli. pic.twitter.com/1xBAQ3YnEz
— Ministerstvo dopravy (@min_dopravy) 29. března 2019

Construction of another D35 section will start and D1 upgrades will continue

On Thursday 14 March construction of the D35 in section Opatovice nad Labem – Časy with a length of 12.6 km started. This section will follow up section Časy and Ostrov with 14.7 km that is currently under construction. Both motorway sections have 27.3 km and will be completed in 2022.

On Friday 8 March, workers will start with preparations for continued upgrades of the D1 motorway. Traffic restrictions will be situated in section 2 between Mirošovice on km 21 and Hvězdonice on km 29 and in section 7 between Soutice on km 56 and Loket on km 66. Repairs of remaining D1 sections (altogether 7 sections with an aggregate length of 71 km) should start this year still. With construction works being done during motorway operation, the entire motorway between Mirošovice and Brno shall be completed in 2021.

At the moment 187 km of motorways and category I roads are under construction, of which 107 km are a green-field motorway investment, 21 km are D1 sections and 59 km are upgrades of category I roads.
Another 178 km are prepared for construction in 2019. Most advanced sections are the Brno D1 motorway, the South-Bohemian D3, the Karlovy Vary D6, the Chomutov D7, the Hradec Králové D11 and the Frýdek-Místek bypass on D46 and D56, including the extension to the D48 and the Otrokovice bypass on D55.

You can check the current state of progress in the ŘSD interactive map and find information about the D1 modernisation at www.novad1.cz

CzechToll has successfully completed first tests of the new toll system and transportation companies can start registering in October

Odbor komunikace — Thu, 28 Feb 2019 13:38:08 GMT

Tests of the digital geomodel stored in new on-board units were under way from mid January until 17 February 2019. The prototype vehicle for mobile control rode 5750 km on Czech roads during this period. A total of 2153 toll sections were used for verifying the correctness of the geomodel and functionality of the new on-board unit, representing 99.26% of all toll sections where toll will be be collected from 1 December 2019. The remaining toll sections are situated on roads that are under construction and were not accessible during the testing.

Production of new on-board units started as well. The units were developed and are made in the Czech Republic. Production of all the 450 000 on-board units will be finished until mid September 2019.

"Should I draw a parallel between the construction of the new toll system and a house, we have now completed the shell and core. Besides finishing all the different components of the whole project, we are facing a major task: convincing transportation companies to devote some time in October and November to essential changes to their contracts and replace their on-board units. It will primarily depend on the transportation businesses whether they want to see the long queues at the borders and fuel stations again, as we remember them from the beginning of 2007 when the toll system was launched," said Matej Okáli, CzechToll CEO.

CzechToll also introduced their mobile control prototype vehicle in front of the building of the Ministry of Transport today. CzechToll will hand over forty new vehicles for toll collection control as part of its supply of the toll collection system in the last quarter of 2019.

At first glance, these Volkswagen Transporter vehicles will be similar to those used by the Customs administrations when checking the toll collection today. These current vehicles have however reached the end of their service life. The new vehicles will house cutting-edge technologies that will help the state better control whether transportation companies meet their toll obligations.

"Unlike in the prototype, the new vehicles we are going to supply to the Customs administration will be also equipped with a safe and a screen for the second passenger sitting in the front seat and the inner layout will be different as well. At this moment, the testing and fine-tuning of all systems and equipment inside the car, so that they work seamlessly, is the priority for us" Matej Okáli added.

Contacts for more information:
Miroslav Beneš
CzechToll speaker
M +420 603 174 347
miroslav.benes@czechtoll.cz

The European Space Agency will be based in Prague

Odbor komunikace — Wed, 27 Feb 2019 15:59:44 GMT

"It is significant news for the Czech Republic that decision-making about the development of EU satellite systems will be based in Prague. Experts in navigation, Earth observation and telecommunications from whole Europe will be meeting in Prague. This is an opportunity for Czech businesses that can meet these European entities and seek contacts and cooperation. It simply makes sense to sit by the source of information and decision-making", said the transport minister Dan Ťok.

Controlled from Prague will be not only the market development for Galileo and EGNOS satellite navigation systems but also the Copernicus Earth observation programme and the GOVSATCOM telecommunications system. The agency will be also responsible for safety certification of the entire programme. This is of key importance for the reliability of EU satellite services, particularly at a time of cyber threats. The agency shall be also involved in innovation schemes.

This means that the Czech Republic has a unique chance of gaining importance in technologies and applications with high added value. Besides close contact with GSA, it is the programmes of ESA, that prepares satellites for the EU, that are the instruments for this development.

Satellite systems are used in everyday life: mobile phone navigation, synchronisation of banking and power grids, weather forecast and online news from the whole world have become a matter of fact thanks to satellite services. Satellite navigation and Earth observation are also widely used in many fields such as transportation, logistics, agriculture, management of natural resources, environmental monitoring, smart cities and many others. Different autonomous systems will also depend on satellite services. The significance of these systems has been growing fast.

It has been a long-term objective to boost the role of GSA and the Ministry of Transport has devoted seven years to this activity. Given the complexity and challenge of the negotiation process (mostly during the last eight months), cooperation between many sectors was essential. These sectors involved the Government Department, the National Cyber and Information Security Agency, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Interior Ministry, the Ministry of the Environment, the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports, the Czech Statistical Office and the government agent for cooperation with GSA who was leading the negotiations about the GSA head office in Prague.

The most frequent traffic offences in 2018: Speeding, seat belt not fastened, use of mobile phone

Odbor komunikace — Tue, 05 Feb 2019 12:19:01 GMT

Speeding was the most frequent traffic offence in 2018. The speed limit exceeded in municipalities by less than 20 km/h but also by more than 5 km/h. One third of all drivers who received penalty points committed this offence. That is 130 000 cases.

The second most frequent office last year was the failure to wear the seat belt or protective helmet. The police penalised this in 17% of the cases, i.e. 66 000 offences.

The third most frequent offence was the holding of the mobile phone or another voice or recording device while driving. This was the case in 13% of all offences – that is 51 000 cases.

The fourth offence was speeding – 20 km/h and more in a municipality and more than 10 km/h but less than 30 km/h outside municipalities, which was the fifth most frequent offence. What follows is non-respecting the right of way, major speeding, failure to stop at red light or at the "Stop" sign, use of alcohol or drugs and driving without driving licence.

Most drivers have two or three penalty points

There were 480 000 drivers in the central drivers registry as of 31 December 2018 who had committed a traffic offence or criminal act subject to penalty points. Such a driver therefore has at least one penalty point. This corresponds to seven percent of all registered drivers (6.8 million), so every 14th driver has a penalty point.

Almost 40 000 drivers, i.e. over eight percent of all penalised drivers, have twelve points. Most of them have two points (170 000 drivers), followed by a group with three points (107 000 drivers). Men aged 44 and women aged 43 are the biggest group of penalised drivers.

The Ministry of Transport sent a proposal to the remarks proceedings in February to amend the points system as part of a road act amendment. The aim is to simplify the system to three sets of points, set fixed on-the-spot fines and respond to the most frequent offences. The amendment will not bring stricter penalties – on the contrary, the Ministry of Transport wants to reduce penalties for minor offences.

The government supported the introduction of electronic motorway coupons, the price will not go up

Odbor komunikace — Mon, 04 Feb 2019 15:55:38 GMT

"The driver registers the licence plate of the car in an internet system or mobile app and makes the payment. This means that he/she does not have to stick anything to the windshield any longer. It shall be also possible to pay the fee in selected sales points where drivers are currently buying motorway coupons. This will save us up to 100 million CZK for printing and distributing the coupons," adds the transport minister Dan Ťok.

From 2021 drivers of cars up to 3.5t can choose between an on-line payment or purchase in a sales point. But printed coupons will not be available any more. The driver will register the licence plate in an on-line shop and pay the fee and that's it. Like today, it will be possible to buy ten-day, monthly and yearly coupons. The change in the payment method of the time-based motorway coupon will not increase the price, so the same rates CZK 310, 440 and 1500 are foreseen. The government decided to keep the upper price limit of the motorway coupon.

The customs service and the police will continue checking whether the motorway toll has been paid. They will use fixed or mobile cameras. Payments will be registered in an information system of the The State Fund for Transport Infrastructure. Videotolling has been already in use in Slovakia, Austria and Hungary, and Germany is planning its introduction soon.

Austria will help the Czech Republic with the launch of electronic motorway coupons

Odbor komunikace — Thu, 24 Jan 2019 14:38:27 GMT

"Like in Austria or Slovakia, the licence plate will be registered in an online shop, the motorway toll paid there and you can go. Several fixed or mobile cameras will provide system control. Experts from Asfinag will give advice what to pay attention to when preparing and launching the system," said Dan Ťok after the meeting.

The Austrian minister Norbert Hofer said that demand for electronic motorway coupons has been growing steadily in Austria, even when two thirds of drivers still use the traditional coupon because the system still allows this. The Czech model shall however use only digital coupons from 2021. The launch of the so-called videotolling will reduce annual costs by CZK 100 million. In 2017 the cost of printing and distribution of coupons reached CZK 314 million.

Both ministers were also talking about the modernisation of cross-border railway lines, a faster connection between Prague and Linz and preparation of contracts about the connection of the South-Bohemian D3 with the Austrian S10. They also discussed the construction of the border bridge between D52 by Mikulov and the A5 via the Včelínek/Niklasgraben creek.

The Austrian minister Hofer agreed with minister Ťok about the need for simplification and shortening of permission and approval proceedings for construction projects. The duration of all processes is up to 25 years in Austria as well. When building motorways, both countries are also facing such issues as sudden discovery of highly protected animal species and a sophisticated and lengthy environmental impact assessment process.

The study on the Danube-Odra-Elbe water channel is now public

Odbor komunikace — Wed, 23 Jan 2019 08:58:20 GMT

"According to the economic assessment, further planning of the water canal connecting rivers Danube and Odra makes sense. The Central Commission of the Ministry of Transport proposed to disregard the Elbe branch of the corridor due to very high construction costs of long navigation tunnels. I will recommend continuing with the preparation of the Danube-Odra part of the water canal project with expected costs of CZK 283 billion," says the transport minister Dan Ťok.

Different variants of the water canal, including the combination of only some branches, were assessed in the study. The results confirmed that the project variant that includes the Elbe branch is risky. The Central Commission of the Ministry of Transport therefore recommended planning the Danube-Odra branch, negotiate the border crossing with Poland and Slovakia and do SEA together with these two partner countries.

The government will decide about the next steps in the preparation of this water canal and can approve the recommendation of the Central Commission of the Ministry of Transport, i.e. dropping the Elbe branch and continuing with the Danube-Odra branch on the Czech territory.

The Ministry of Transport assigned the feasibility study for the Danube-Odra-Labe water corridor to check the economic effectiveness of this prospective new water route in terms of transportation, water management, energy and recreational function. The study was prepared in line with government decision of January 19, 2011 that inputs shall be prepared for a water canal assessment and for the decision whether the canal shall be kept it or removed from landscape protection. Work on the study started in July 2016 and the final wording of the document was approved by the Central Commission in December 2018.

You can download the study using the link below. Due to a limited number of downloads, we are adding two more links where the study can be downloaded. Please note that the study has about 5 GB.

www.uschovna.cz/zasilka/JJCYJRA523D7ZP62-L23

Planning of the high-speed rail line to Dresden enters a new phase

Odbor komunikace — Fri, 18 Jan 2019 15:43:06 GMT

"The new high-speed rail line to Dresden is among our priority connections. When completed, the travel time from Prague to Dresden will be reduced to one hour and a portion of trains will be diverted from the current Elbe valley route that is stretched to its limits", says the transport minister Dan Ťok. Part of the new high-speed rail line is also a 26km-long tunnel under the Krušné hory mountains. The Czech Railway Infrastructure Administration SŽDC is currently negotiating its technical parameters with Deutsche Bahn (DB NETZ).

The transport ministers also talked about the construction of a new 4km-long cross-border tunnel between Rumburk and Seifhennersdorf which would extend the existing railway connection Děčín – Sebnitz – Dolní Poustevna – Rumburk and connect it to the Varnsdorf – Zittau – Hrádek nad Nisou – Liberec route.

The road connection between Lobendava and Neustadt, a project which both Saxony and the Ústí nad Labem region are seeking, was another topic. The Saxon representatives said at the meeting that they would calculate the economic cost of this project which would make travelling easier. The so-called "Dresden route" is a cross-border tourist path and is closed for cars.

This year 47 km of new motorways and category I roads will open, works will start on another 178 km

Odbor komunikace — Sun, 06 Jan 2019 14:07:48 GMT

"You will find most construction sites on the Brno D1 motorway, the South Bohemian D3, the Karlovy Vary D6, the Olomouc D35, the Chomutov D7, the Hradec Králové D11 and the entire D48 including the bypass of Frýdek-Místek and connection to D56 and the bypass of Otrokovice on the D55. This means that 187 km of motorways and category I roads are under construction at the moment," says the transport minister Dan Ťok.

A total of 128 km of new motorways are under construction, of which 21 is the modernisation of the D1. Also, 59 km are upgrades on category I roads. In 2018 a total of 45 km of roads opened – of this 26 km of motorways were re-built between Prague and Brno, 4 km were built on the D7 and 15 km on category I roads.

"I cannot open dozens of new motorway kilometres on the green field when nobody started any works before 2014, because preparation works were completely stopped in 2010. Today, new motorways and bypasses are built so quickly that construction companies cannot offer any further capacity," the minister adds. The standard construction period is between two and three years and four years for more challenging projects.

You can see the map of current motorway and category I road construction projects at www.mdcr.cz/mapa.

Motorway and category I road construction in numbers

In 2019 a total of 178 of roads are ready for construction

50 km of this is the D1 modernisation (i.e. construction of a new motorway in the same route)
80 km of this are new motorways
48 m of this are new roads

In 2019 a total of 47 km of roads will open to drivers

0 of this is the D1 modernisation
22.4 km of this are new motorways
25 km of this are new roads

In 2018 work on 90 km of motorways and roads started

21 of this is the D1 modernisation
53 km of this are new motorways
16 km of this are new roads

In 2018 a total of 45 km of roads were opened

26 of this is the D1 modernisation
4 km of this are new motorways
15 km of this are new roads

Currently 187 km of new motorways and category I roads are under construction

128 km of this are motorways sections
21 km of this is the D1 modernisation
59 km of this are new category I roads

The Czech railway will be more competitive – the Ministry signed a memorandum with Shift2Rail

Odbor komunikace — Fri, 04 Jan 2019 10:11:24 GMT

The mission of the Shift2Rail national platform, an expert and consultancy body of the Ministry of Transport for railway research and development, is to support the participation of the Czech Republic in European schemes and engage regional entities in research activities. "This new cooperation shall lead to the identification of joint priorities and potential interaction through information exchange and participation in events organised for the promotion of railway industry stakeholders and for more profit from European programmes", says the CEO of Shift2Rail Carlo Borghini.

But this cooperation will bring even more added value: the engagement of SMEs and regional industry. "Also Czech suppliers making and introducing the most state-of-the-art technologies in railway transportation will get a chance thanks to new European projects. Construction of high-speed rail lines lies ahead and it is in this field where the safety and technology standards are the highest. Investments will be however made also in the existing railway network. The memorandum will help fullfil the great potential of Czech railways," says the transport minister Dan Ťok.

Shift2Rail is a platform seeking research and innovations in the railway industry. It accelerates integration of new and advanced technologies into innovative solutions for railway products. On top of that, Shift2Rail supports the competitiveness of European railways and satisfies the changing transportations needs of the EU.

Work on the D35 extension started, another 27 motorway km will open simultaneously in four years

Odbor komunikace — Tue, 04 Dec 2018 13:09:23 GMT

"On this key motorway we are starting with the construction of a section which has almost 15 km and will open the motorway after 44 months. In the spring of 2019 construction of 12.6 km will start as well and we want to open both sections in 2022. The extension to the D35 will take heavy traffic away from road I/35 between Holice and Zámrsk and relief adjacent towns and municipalities. When completed, this motorway should then divert a portion of traffic from the D1 which has been stretched to its limits," says the Transport Minister Dan Ťok.

Before the completion of this 27km section, RSD shall gradually start work on several other places on the D35. From 2021 construction on sections Ostrov – Vysoké Mýto, Vysoké Mýto – Džbánov, Džbánov – Litomyšl, Litomyšl – Janov and Janov – Opatovec with a total length of 55 km will gradually start. The whole D35 shall connect Jičín, Hradec Králové, Olomouc and Lipník nad Bečvou and with a total length of more than 200 km it will the second longest motorway in the Czech Republic. D35 is also part of the European TEN-T corridors in its entire length.

At the moment 194 km of new motorways and category 1 roads, mostly city bypasses, are under construction. New motorway sections constitute 133 km, of which 21 km is the D1 where construction works are under way during motorway operation. You can find more details on the different projects on our interactive map.

Začaly práce na pokračování dálnice D35 v úšeku Časy-Ostrov, řidičům se za čtyři roky otevře najednou 27 kilometrů dálnice. https://t.co/F66AI6Z88U pic.twitter.com/sGnuSbOKr8
— Ministerstvo dopravy (@min_dopravy) 4. prosince 2018

Project details

Main route:
length 14 700 m

category: D 25.5/120
road surface: 323 000 sqm
number of civil structures: 155

Contractor: Eurovia, Metrostav, Swietelsky

Project price according to the contract: CZK 3 232 mil. excl. VAT

Construction period: 44 months until opening

Ministers of transport agreed in Brussels on a mobility package compromise

Odbor komunikace — Tue, 04 Dec 2018 09:38:13 GMT

"It was essential for the Czech Republic that the directive concerning the posting of workers in the framework of the provision of services does not apply to bilateral transport. Regarding the so-called cabotage (i.e. operating transport services within another member state), the existing regime will be preserved, allowing three operations within seven days. On the other hand, a period of five days for breaks between cabotage was laid down," says minister Ťok who attended the meeting of transport ministers of the EU states.

The rules will also allows drivers spend two subsequent weekly rest times in their truck cabin, but they must spend their regular weekly rest hours outside the vehicle. Driver's work must be organised by the transport company in a way that the driver can return home every three or four weeks. Until the end of 2024 all vehicles in which international transport and cabotage is operated must be equipped with second-generation tachographs.

The compromise will be further negotiated in trialogues with the European Commission and the European Parliament. Long disputes had taken place about the so-called mobility package in the past. Countries such as France, Belgium and Germany decided to protect themselves against cheaper competitors from central and east European countries and were not interesting in any dialogue. Any efforts by central and east European countries, which were offering a number of concessions during the negotiations, had been permanently blocked.

The ministers were also discussing in Brussels the directive regarding the end of the seasonal time change. Like in October in Graz, the majority of member states agreed that a detailed analysis and an impact assessment should be provided for the named proposal on the European level.

By the end of the year 204 km of roads will be under construction, in 2019 another 172 km.

Odbor komunikace — Wed, 21 Nov 2018 10:32:26 GMT

"We brought momentum to the construction of roads and the entire capacity of building companies is now almost exhausted. On Tuesday 4 December we will start with the construction of the D35 motorway in section Časy – Ostrov still and want to start with the D3 in Hodějovice – Třebonín until the end of the year as well, so we will add another 27 km, which means that 204 km of new roads will be under construction by the end of 2018," says the Transport Minister Dan Ťok.

By the end of this year 45.5 km of roads will have been opened, of which 30 km are motorways and 15.5 km are category 1 roads. For 2019 RSD has another 172 km of new motorways and category 1 roads ready for construction and the biggest projects are the D1, D3, D7, D35 plus D46, D48 and D49. Construction of the bypasses of Znojmo, Krnov, Kravaře, Karviná, Nová Paka, Církvice and Olbramovice will start.

"In 2019 an 8km section of the D3 Bošilec – Ševětín and by the end of the year another 14km section between Přerov and Lipník on the D1 shall be open for drivers. When counting category I roads as well, we will get 46 km of new roads," says the RSD CEO Jan Kroupa.

Drivers will encounter most building machines on the D1 motorway between Prague and Brno on up to seven construction sites in 2019, so that the entire D1 has been overhauled by 2021. 90 km of the motorway have been completed and the length of the remaining sections is 70 km. On top of this, intensive work will continue on the motorway by Prague and Brno.

All motorway and category 1 road sections that the RSD is planning to build or repair can be found on the RSD website on an interactive amp. Find more about the D1 modernisation at www.novad1.cz. Drivers can call the free number +420 800 280 281 and get current information on traffic restrictions. The RSD assistance service can be also called using this number. Traffic information is available at www.dopravniinfo.cz.

More and more drones flying over our heads

Odbor komunikace — Thu, 15 Nov 2018 14:04:07 GMT

Pilotless planes have a big potential in many industries such as aerial photography, infrastructure inspections, security, search for people, building security, agriculture, telecommunications, the film industry and transportation of parcels and medical materials. These machines keep on improving, constantly receive new features and become cheaper to buy. In the future they may even transport people. "Drones have a huge potential and can bring substantial innovation to transportation. The use of drones by the police, customs administration and fire brigade is a separate chapter. Clear rules must be defined and regulation must apply in the future, so that drones do not threaten the air traffic and citizens," says the Transport Minister Dan Ťok.

The Smart Sky concept defines the essential pillars for this: use of traditional know-how in the aviation industry, university research and development, international collaboration, creation of infrastructure and well-functioning state administration and regulation. "We want to ensure that drones can operate in a safe way up to the level of autonomous flying and want to support the development of all related services. On the Czech territory we also want to establish testing space for drones which follows local trends in Europe and the world," minister Ťok lists more concept objectives. The Smart Sky concept is a joint initiative of the Ministry of Transport, the Civil Aviation Authority, Air Navigation Services of the Czech Republic, Czech Technical University and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Alliance (UAVA).

Air space digitalisation, involving certain security features, a high level of automation and simplicity in use, will be the tool to achieve this objective. The unmanned vehicles strategy also brings more awareness campaigns in this area where commercial flights without a permit, flying over people, buildings and roads without a permit and better control and enforcement of the rules in practice are the most frequent offences.

These steps are taken in line with new European legislation that shall be passed at the turn of 2018 and 2019. Its objective is to create a more efficient and flexible regime that will unify the rules for unmanned vehicles across the EU. It will introduce three basic operation categories and reference to the so-called UTM/U-Space, i.e. services and infrastructure for the control and monitoring of drones in air space. The new legislation shall also, among other things, establish a national registry for all drones heavier than 250 g and their operator.

Four companies were short-listed for the competition dialogue for the operation of the D4 motorway

Odbor komunikace — Tue, 13 Nov 2018 10:06:35 GMT

"By the beginning of 2019 we are planning to open the competition dialogue where companies from France, an Austrian-German consortium, a German-Spanish-British association of companies and an Austrian-Australian-Spanish-French consortium will compete. The winning consortium shall start building another 32 km of the D4 motorway and operate them for 25 years after construction completion," says the Transport Minister Dan Ťok.

Seven requests for participation were filed. The Ministry of Transport assessed whether all seven applications meet the tender terms and which bidders best meet the technical qualification criteria. The commission then stated that all bidders met the tender terms and recommended – in accordance with the tender terms – limiting their number to four for subsequent negotiations in the so-called competition dialogue.

After this, contractual documentation will be finalised and provided to the bidders as input for their participation in the competition dialogue. The ministry plans to send the call for participation in the competition dialogue by the beginning of next year unless one of the losing consortia raises objections to the limitation of the number of bidders.

"The development preparations for the D4 extension continue, last pieces of land are being purchased and rental agreement and liens prepared. The Ministry of the Environment has also completed the EIA process and a positive binding statement was issued for the entire remaining D4 section," adds minister Ťok.

Up to CZK 11.5 billion will be provided from the EIB loan for the modernisation of railway hubs

Odbor komunikace — Wed, 07 Nov 2018 14:51:47 GMT

"By using the EIB loan, we are preparing ourselves for the future funding of transport infrastructure. European funds, from which most biggest transportation projects have been paid, will decline in the future. By taking this loan, we will also gain experience with other possible funding methods. And that experience will come useful in the future," says the Transport Minister Dan Ťok.

The aim was to get the consent of the government on the acceptance of a loan from the European Investment Bank (EIB) up to a maximum amount of CZK 11.5 billion. The money shall be used for the upgrade of selected railway corridors which belonged to the "Elimination of Selected Bottlenecks on Designated Corridors of the Main Network in the Czech Republic" project submitted to the so-called Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) blending call.

This "blending" means that projects are funded by combining subsidies, the EIB loan and money from the national budget. It is the result of efforts of the European Commission to seek innovative funding models for transport infrastructure. Put simply, the European Commission provides subsidies to motivate us to take loans for accelerated funding transport infrastructure.

The European Investment Bank is an international financial institution which shall primarily support development schemes in EU member states. Therefore, it provides better interest rates than other market alternatives. The Ministry of Finance will enter into the individual loan agreements and decide whether they are profitable. The same ministry will also guarantee Czech Republic's ability to repay the loans.

The Czech Republic will host the PIARC World Road Congress after 52 years again

Odbor komunikace — Thu, 25 Oct 2018 11:22:12 GMT

"Hosting the World Road Congress is great success and a matter of high prestige for the Czech Republic. Traffic experts from all over the world will come to meet in Prague. This will be an excellent opportunity to present the Czech Republic as a country which has dramatically changed since the 1970s and can rightfully claim a place among modern European states," says the Transport Minister Dan Ťok.

Prague got 122, Sydney 66 and Kuala Lumpur 32 votes in a secret vote about the congress venue. The Czech capital won primarily thanks to its corresponding professional care available for road experts. Another important factor which influenced the vote by the member states is the convenient geographical location of Prague in the heart of Europe. Thanks to our location, we are well connected with other world regions and are easy to reach.

[#PIARCWRC2023] the Czech Republic will host the 27th World Road Congress! PIARC congratulates all the candidates (#Australia, #CzechRepublic and #Malaysia). See you in Abu Dhabi 2019 (#PIARCWRC2019), Calgary 2022 (#PIARCIWRC2022) and at all PIARC events in the meantime! pic.twitter.com/4ENUW5U8JT
— WorldRoadAssociation (@PIARC_Roads) 25. října 2018

PIARC is an international non-profit and non-political association devoted to international cooperation in road traffic and road infrastructure. The Czech Republic is a member of this association. The World Road Congress has been organised since 1909. The last one took place in Soul in 2015 and the 2019 venue is the United Arab Emirates.

The D11 and D35 motorways by Hradec Králové and D48 by Frýdek-Místek will be free of charge

Odbor komunikace — Tue, 23 Oct 2018 12:57:21 GMT

"In 2018 we decided to accommodate the requirements of the Hradec Králové Region and the Ministry of the Environment to exempt parts of the motorway from paid sections, because they are bypass roads. To be specific, these are Frýdek-Místek – Dobrá on D48, Sedlice – Kukleny on D11 and Sedlice – Opatovice on D35. Starting next year, this will add another 13 km to the existing 186 km where drivers pay nothing," said the transport minister Dan Ťok.

The Hradec Králové Region and the City of Hradec Králové argued in their main remark that the sections of motorways D11 and D35 are actually the south-west city bypass and are heavily used by local traffic as well. "These motorway sections are a suitable route for long-distance transit as well. Specifically, I mean the direction from Náchod and Trutnov (access to Hradce Králové on road I/33), from Jičín (access to Hradce Králové on road I/35) and from Nový Bydžov (on road II/324) for drivers who continue to Pardubice (on road I/37) and the other way round. In the current state, these vehicles transiting without the motorway sticker and subject to this fee must use roads in the city of Hradec Králové (I/35, I/31 and I/37) and/or road II/324 on the municipal land of Opatovice nad Labem," the city and region remarked.

The Ministry of the Environment requested in their remark to exempt a part of the D48 in section Frýdek-Místek – Dobrá from paid motorways. "The reason why we argue this way is very poor air quality in municipality Dobrá arising from heavy traffic on road II/648 (which passes through the city centre), because drivers are avoiding the paid section of the D48 motorway by taking road II/648 instead," the ministry said.

Since the start of 2018, no sticker has been required on the D3 around Veselí nad Lužnicí, the D6 between Cheb and Karlovy Vary, the D55 around Otrokovice, the D52 near Pohořelice or part of the D46 motorway near Hněvotín thanks to the free use of the Olomouc bypass on the D35 motorway.

In the past, sections of the D1 around Brno, the D3 motorway around Tábor, the D6 near Cheb and the D10 around Mladá Boleslav were exempt from charges. In the next round, the ministry enabled free-of-charge access to Prague for the inhabitants of surrounding municipalities near Prague, i.e. sections on the D6, D7, D10 and D11.

Sales of motorway stickers have been growing
"These changes did not show in the sales of motorway stickers – on the contrary, their sales have been rising every year. Last year CZK 5.027 billion were collected, which is CZK 268 million more than in 2016 and 561 million more than in 2015," says minister Ťok. In 2014, when no section was excluded from the fees, a total of 5.446 million motorway stickers were sold and in 2016 it was almost 841 000 more. And in 2017 the figures grew by another 343 000 stickers. Sales were growing in 2018 as well.

The sales of one-year motorway coupons for 2019 for weight category up to 3.5 tonnes will start no later than on December 1. Coupons with a validity period of one month or ten days will be available for sale with the arrival of the new year. Coupon prices for 2019 remain the same as this year. The one-year coupon for 2019 is valid from December 1, 2018 to January 31, 2020, and its price is CZK 1,500. The price of the one-month coupon is CZK 440 and the price of the 10-day coupon is CZK 310. New motorway stickers will again be provided with security features due to their increased counterfeit protection.

The study confirmed water corridor Danube – Odra – Elbe stands a chance

Odbor komunikace — Fri, 19 Oct 2018 09:54:18 GMT

"The results of the economic assessment showed that opening a connection between Danube and Odra for navigation brings most benefits. The Elbe branch of the corridor reduces the effectiveness of the whole project due to very high investment costs of long navigation tunnels. The total investment costs of the project in the variant where all three rivers are connected amount to CZK 582 billion. In the variant connecting Danube with Odra the costs were estimated at CZK 281 billion," minister Dan Ťok describes the outcome of the feasibility study.

Different variants of the water corridor, including the combination of only some branches, were assessed in the study. The project containing all three branches shows a positive economic effectiveness slightly above the limit set out by the effectiveness assessment methodology. The Risk Analysis showed that more project benefits would be complicated due to limited transportation capacity that would entail additional investment costs. The results confirmed that the project variant including the Elbe branch is risky. A connection between Danube and Odra got a much better mark.

The study says that the construction of the water corridor is closely connected with projects which shall improve navigation on connecting rivers, i.e. Elbe, Odra and/or Váh. The study assumes that a certain level of navigation will be achieved, which is not the case at the moment. This will lead to investment costs of the provision of corresponding navigation class in these river sections, which the study does not foresee. An independent economic assessment and separate projects in Poland and Slovakia must be prepared for these connecting projects.

The members of the Monitoring Committee, counting the representatives of different ministries, universities, regions, stakeholders and international representation of Slovakia and Poland, have been discussing the results of the study and economic assessment. The Central Commission of the Ministry of Transportation will also assess the material and the documents will be subject to a peer review across departments as well. Then the study will be submitted to the government for approval. The next steps, also including the EIA, will follow the government negotiations.

The Ministry of Transport assigned the feasibility study for the Danube-Odra-Labe water corridor to check the economic effectiveness of this prospective new water route in terms of transportation, water management, energy and recreational function. The study was prepared in line with government decision of January 19, 2011 that inputs shall be prepared for a water corridor assessment and for the decision whether the corridor shall be kept it or removed from landscape protection. Work on the study commenced in July 2016.

The government decided 86.3 billion will be invested in the construction of motorways and railways

Odbor komunikace — Wed, 17 Oct 2018 08:51:03 GMT

"The budget for the next year will ensure that the construction of new motorways and railways can continue. A total of CZK 65.5 billion will come from national resources and CZK 20.8 from European funds. Together with the finance minister, we will look for the four billion during the first quarter of the next year in unspent expenses and the State Fund for Transport Infrastructure budget for category II and III roads," said the transport minister Dan Ťok after the government negotiations. The government provided additional CZK 15 billion for repairs of roads and bridges during the last four years.

The budget will make it possible to continue with the construction of 185 km of motorways and category I roads but also start new transportation projects. At the beginning of December construction of the 14.7km continuation of the D35 motorway in section Časy – Ostrov can start. Next year another 12.6 km of the D35 in section Opatovice nad Labem – Časy will follow. Construction of the bypass of Budweis on the D3, which involves two sections with a length of almost 20 km, can soon continue. And also the construction of the 22.6 km of two sections of the D11 extension from Hradec Králové via Smiřice to Jaroměř will continue. And last but not least, modernisation of the D1 on seven sections in a total length of 70 km will continue.

Reconstruction of the Negrelli viaduct in Prague will continue next year as well. Modernisation of the tracks from Prague towards Kladno, with a branch-off to the Václav Havel Airport, will follow this reconstruction. Modernisation of the rail line between the Prague Main Railway Station and Hostivař is also under way. Work will also continue on another section of the Fourth Transit Corridor from Prague to Budweis. Modernisation of the Sudoměřice – Votice track will bring a second track in this section, two tunnels and a new station Červený Újezd. The train speed will to up to 160 km/h, which will cut the travel time for express trains between Prague and Tábor to one hour. Construction works are expected to be completed in 2021.

Construction of 177 km of motorways is under way and dozens of more km are in the pipeline

Odbor komunikace — Wed, 10 Oct 2018 11:41:16 GMT

"The South-Bohemian part of the D3 motorway has progressed most. Here, works are under way on almost 19 km of the motorway itself plus another 20 km of the Budweis bypass. Construction of the D11 from Hradec Králové towards Poland, where 22.5 km of motorway are under construction, continues as well," says the Transport Minister Dan Ťok.

To be specific, a portion of the D3 motorway Bošilec - Ševětín is under construction and will be completed next year. The Ševětín - Borek section will be opened in 2020. Preparations of sections Úsilné - Hodějovice and Hodějovice - Třebonín, where bids of building companies are currently being evaluated, are under way. The motorway should hit the Austrian border in 2024.

Regarding the D6 to Karlsbad, a total of three sections with an aggregate length of 14.6 km are under construction: the Řevničov bypass, the Lubenec bypass and the Nové Strašecí - Řevničov section. All these three sections will be completed within three years and more sections will follow. The whole motorway could be completed between 2025 and 2026.
The continuation of the D11 in sections Hradec Králové - Smiřice and Smiřice - Jaroměř is also under construction. A total of 22.5 km will have been opened within three or four years. An extension of the motorway towards Poland is also in the pipeline and the motorway shall be completed between 2024 and 2025.

And there are more construction sites on the D48 motorway: in section Rybí - Rychaltice and the Frýdek-Místek bypass along with a connection to the D56. A total of 89 km have been overhauled between Prague and Brno and another 70 km will see an upgrade until 2021.

You will find the complete overview of current and scheduled works and the km counts in our interactive map at: www.mdcr.cz/mapa showing that as of today there are 177.3 km of motorways and category I roads under construction, of which 110.2 km are motorways (the D1 modernisation is 13.6 km) and 67 km are construction works on category I roads. Another 43.5 km of motorways and category I roads (of which 42 km are motorways) shall still start this year or at the beginning of next year.

First trains will ride through the Ejpovice tunnel in November

The 4km Ejpovice tunnel, the longest railway tunnel in the Czech Republic, will very soon see its completion. The first train will ride through the south tube already on November 15. From December 9, when a new time schedule comes into effect, all trains will start using both tunnel tubes, so the travel time between Prague and Pilsen will be cut by ten minutes.

One third of the reconstruction of the Negrelli viaduct, a major transportation structure in the country, is now completed. The route capacity will increase and so will the number of trains: up to 14 trains per hour will be operated here. Modernisation of the tracks from Prague towards Kladno, with a branch-off to the Václav Havel Airport, will follow this reconstruction. The entire route could be completed until 2029.

Modernisation of the rail line between the Prague Main Railway Station and Hostivař is also under way. Trains connecting Prague with South Bohemia will now use the four-track rail line. The track speed will rise to 120 km/h. The modernisation will bring convenience for passengers on long-distance trains and make travelling across the capital much easier. The 6km section should be completed in 2021.

Work also continues on another section of the Fourth Transit Corridor from Prague to Budweis. Modernisation of the Sudoměřice – Votice track will bring a second track in this section, two tunnels and a new station Červený Újezd. The train speed will to up to 160 km/h, which will cut the travel time for express trains between Prague and Tábor to one hour. Construction works are expected to be completed in 2021.

Luxembourg and the Czechia cooperate in the frame of space resources exploration and utilization

Odbor komunikace — Wed, 10 Oct 2018 09:30:00 GMT

Photo: www.spaceresources.lu

Both countries agreed to regularly consult and exchange views on their positions regarding the economic, legal, regulatory and technological aspects of the commercial utilization of space resources discussed in international fora and organizations such as the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNCOPUOS) and its subcommittees.

Furthermore, Luxembourg and the Czech Republic agreed to promote and to seek a constructive dialogue with other United Nations Member States with the goal to establish a clear and transparent global framework for the utilization of space resources that may lead to new scientific information and knowledge about the solar system and to valuable commercial applications.

Luxembourg’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Economy Etienne Schneider stated: “After the agreements signed with Portugal, Japan, China and the United Arab Emirates, this is another important step forward in enhancing international cooperation. The memorandum with the Czech Republic is yet another solid recognition of our economic development initiative SpaceResources.lu that is driven and lead by the newly created Luxembourg Space Agency to position the Grand Duchy as a European hub for the exploration and use of space resources.”

Minister of Transport of the Czech Republic Dan Ťok stated: “I consider as important that the Czech Republic actively participates in broader bilateral and multilateral discussions on how to ensure lawful utilisation of space resources for the benefit of mankind. The memorandum with Luxembourg may represent one of useful platforms to support such discussions and actions allowing to actively and efficiently contribute to establish a transparent and stable legal framework for the utilization of space resources and to mobilize necessary investments.”

Work started on more than 15 km of the D11 motorway between Hradec Králové and Smiřice

Odbor komunikace — Wed, 03 Oct 2018 13:22:13 GMT

We have currently 23 km of the D11 from Hradec Králové up to Jaroměř under construction. And preparations are under way also on the remaining part of the motorway towards the border. Construction of the connecting sections from Jaroměř to Trutnov and on the state border depends on when the planning permits are issued. We expect that work on these two last sections of the D11 will start in 2022", the Transport Minister Dan Ťok said about the construction commencement on this D11 section.

The D11 motorway Prague - Hradec Králové - Jaroměř - Trutnov - state border has a total length of 151.4 km according to the design. Currently the section Prague - Hradec Králové is in operation. The D11 motorway is belongs to the international road E67 Warsaw – Prague and is part of the TEN-T global network of the European transport corridor Paris – Nuremberg – Pilsen – Prague – Hradec Králové – Vratislav – Warsaw – Brest – Moscow, connecting eastern and western Europe.

D11 Hradec Králové – Smiřice

length: 15 460 m
road surface: 349 121 sqm
number of civil structures: 139

Contractor: EUROVIA – METROSTAV – SWIETELSKY
Construction price according to the contract: CZK 2 594 million excluding VAT

Changes to compulsory equipment and first aid kits – motorists will see several changes in October

Odbor komunikace — Wed, 26 Sep 2018 07:59:24 GMT

No need to replace an expired first aid kit

"We have simplified the compulsory equipment and first aid kit content in cars. Now, drivers no longer need spare fuses, the reserve wheel, a matrix wrench and a hand jack – but only provided the car operator has an assistance service policy in place which includes the replacement of a damage tyre across the Czech Republic non-stop," says the Transport Minister Dan Ťok. Starting on October 1, the triangular scarf, patches with a pad and a plastic mouth mask do not necessarily have to be replaced after expiring.

Motorbike riders no longer need to come to emission tests, visiting the Technical Inspection Station once in four years

The new period for regular inspections at Technical Inspection Stations (STK) is now four years for bigger motorbikes (first inspection of new motorbikes after 6 years, another every 4 years). Besides mopeds, motorbikes with a weight of over 400 kg no longer need to come to emission measurements. "We made a concession to motorbike riders. Since it is their hobby in the majority of cases, they usually maintain their bikes in a very good technical condition. The practice has shown that the four-year period is sufficient for regular technical inspections," minister Ťok explains.

Sanctions for illegal cheating with mileage

The amended act on the terms and conditions of road vehicles operation also introduces sanctions of up to CZK 500,000 for mileage fraud with tachometers. "We are mostly aiming at individuals and companies who do this service repeatedly and against a payment. We have no intention to damage regular drivers who bought a car that was subject to mileage fraud," says minister Ťok and adds that mechanics who fail to issue a tachometer replacement certificate will be facing sanctions of up to CZK 50,000. If the vehicle operator fails to provide this certificate at the technical inspection, they will face sanctions up to CZK 10,000.

The Ministry of Transport has been fighting mileage fraud for years. Preparation of the https://www.kontrolatachometru.cz/ app was the first step. After entering the VIN code, the user can check the tachometer according to technical inspections. The introduction of photo documentation at the Technical Inspection Stations and Emission Measurement Stations was another step. For next year the ministry is preparing an upgrade of the information system of the Technical Inspection Stations that will automatically warn about all cases where lower mileage was detected during the technical inspection than that recorded at the previous inspection.

An isle that saves lives

Since October, drivers must create a rescue isle between the left lane and the adjacent driving lane. Only vehicles with the right of way may enter this space, including vehicles of the road administrator and vehicles needed for the removal of the consequences of the traffic accident of road obstacle. Fines of up to CZK 2500 can be imposed if the driver enters the isle without authorisation. This step also brought uniform rules with the neighbouring countries such as Germany, Austria and Slovakia who is also planning the same change.

The Ministry is selecting 4 consortia for the completion and operation of 32 km of the D4 motorway

Odbor komunikace — Fri, 21 Sep 2018 08:13:48 GMT

"At the Ministry we are selecting the bidders that will be invited to the competitive dialogue for the 25 years concession for DBFOM of 32 kilometers of the D4 motorway from Příbram to Písek. The companies interested in the tender are from Germany, France, Spain, but also consortia of Turkish-Italian-Dutch-Luxembourg companies or Austro-Australian-Spanish-French association. From the seven consortiums, we will now select four to participate in the competitive dialogue. In 2020, the winner could start building the whole section at once" Transport Minister Dan Ťok said.

The participants of the tender that sent their request for qualification are (in the order of the date of receipt of the RFQ):

HOCHTIEF PPP Solutions GmbH (Germany) + STRABAG AG (Austria)
PAN-MEDITERRANEAN ENGINEERING COMPANY LTD (Izrael)
DIF Infra 5 Participations 1 B.V (Netherlands) + Acciona Concesiones S.L. (Spain) + John Laing Investments Ltd. (UK)
IC Içtaş Inşaat Sanayi ve Ticaret A.Ş. (Turkey) + ASTALDI S.p.A. (Italy) + Intertoll Infrastructure Developments B.V (Netherlands) + BBGI PPP Investment S.à.r.l. (Luxembourg) + TIIC 2, S.C.A., SICAR (Luxembourg)
VINCI Highways SAS (France) + VINCI Concessions SAS (France) + Meridiam Investments SAS (France)
PORR Beteiligungen und Management GmbH (Austria) + Macquarie Corporate Holdings Pty Limited (Australia) + Obrascon Huarte Lain, S.A. (Spain) + Egis Projects S.A. (France)
FCC Concesiones, S.L. (Spain)

The PPP D4 project consists of design, build, finance, operate and maintain of the 32 km missing part of D4 between Háje and Mirotice, and operation and maintenance on subsequent sections of D4 and the 1st class road #20 in the Skalka - Háje and the Mirotice – Krašovice sections. In this context, the Road and Motorways Directorate continues intensively in the investment preparation, in order to obtain building permits in a timely manner, including the provision of diagnostic works on existing sections D4 and I / 20 in order to obtain the necessary data for risk assessment by participants in the competitive dialogue.

Dostavba 32 km dálnice D4 je zase o kousek blíž. Do tendru se přihlásilo těchto sedm zájemců. Vybereme z nich čtyři, kteří se „utkají" o zakázku na dostavbu a 25 let provozu dálnice formou PPP. V roce 2020 by vítěz mohl začít stavět celý úsek najednou! pic.twitter.com/Uj0xkIr73u
— Dan Tok (@tok5934) 20. září 2018

In the Czech Republic, no PPP project in state transport infrastructure has reached this stage of preparation. "In the three to six year horizon, European funds for the constructions of motorways will be significantly reduced. Therefore, we need to prepare for other funding models, such as public-private partnerships, so-called PPPs. In the future, we would like to use this way in the sections where we have a complete zoning permits for the stretch of motorway of at least 30 km. For example: D6, D35 or Central Bohemia part of D3" Ťok added.

The Ministry of Transport opens another call targeting the construction of recharging stations

Odbor komunikace — Tue, 28 Aug 2018 09:22:24 GMT

The Ministry of Transport announces on September 28, 2018 the second Operational Programme Transportation call under a subsidy scheme for the support infrastructure for alternative fuels, targeting the construction of the so-called supplementary network of standard recharging stations. The maximum allocation is CZK 174 million under this call. The deadline for submitting applications will be February 15, 2019.

Applicants doing business in these sectors (who can provide evidence of this) can apply for the subsidy: electrical installations, power distribution, electricity trading, and/or those with experience operating at least 10 publicly accessible recharging stations and those who submit a project involving the construction of recharging stations on the Czech territory. The scope of the project depends on applicant's considerations. In this call, the maximum rate of support of eligible expenditure may be up to 70%. Economical operation, readiness and relevance are the evaluation criteria.

Another call focused on the construction of the so-called supplementary network of recharging stations will be announced next year. By the end of 2023 at least 800 recharging stations should have been built, so that the national objective, stipulated by the National Clean Mobility Action Plan, passed by the government in November 2015, will be met. This new call follows up the first call announced in January 2018 under which four applications will be supported. If these four applications are successful, there will be 132 standard recharging stations installed and supported from the Operational Programme Transportation scheme with an aggregate amount of CZK 26 million.

More information on the terms and conditions of the support under this new call can be found in the detailed documentation of the call No. 67 published on the website of the control body for the Operational Programme: Transportation: http://web.opd.cz/vyzva-67

The D1 will be freely passable near Prague before the end of the summer holiday

Odbor komunikace — Fri, 17 Aug 2018 13:17:22 GMT

The D1 reconstruction in front of Prague is coming to the final phase. The asphalt top cover will be completed in two weeks between km 12 and 16 of the most heavily used Czech motorway. In September and October three more modernised D1 sections will be opened as well, so almost 90 km of the D1 motorway will have been repaired and modernised.

"I checked how the reconstruction work progresses at km 15 of the D1 motorway. About 90 000 cars pass this point every day. A have good news for all drivers: works follow the schedule and will be completed on August 31, the restrictions will be removed and from Saturday Oct 1 on drivers can start using the new section without restrictions," says the transport minister Dan Ťok.

Eurovia is the contractor for the road surface repair and will return to the D1 near Prague next April and start repairing the left section of the motorway between km 9.5 and km 12. The whole reconstruction will cost CZK 250 million excl. VAT.

Two more sections on the D1 will open for drivers during September, the construction of which is done during motorway operation: section No. 10 between Hořice and Koberovice and section No. 20 at Velké Meziříčí and Lhotka. And in October also section No. 4 between Ostředek and Šternov will be opened.

"It is still this year that we are opening another 19.5 km of the modernised D1 – this means that 13 sections out of 20 are completed now, i.e almost 90 km of the new D1," minister Ťok adds.

The total cost of the D1 modernisation before the tenders started in 2013 was estimated at CZK 24 billion and we are currently at CZK 20 billion. RSD wants to have all sections modernised by 2021. At present there are 69 km of the modernised D1 motorway in operation and 33 under reconstruction.

Na 15. kilometru jsem dnes prověřil průběh prací na rekonstrukci dálnice D1. Denně tu projede 90 tisíc aut. Pro všechny řidiče mám dobrou zprávu, dělníci všechno stíhají a 31. srpna práce dokončí, odstraní omezení a od soboty 1. září se bude jezdit po novém a bez omezení. pic.twitter.com/uLludGlFAx
— Dan Tok (@tok5934) 17. srpna 2018

The Senate has approved strict penalties for cheating with the mileage

Odbor komunikace — Fri, 17 Aug 2018 07:41:02 GMT

If the car mechanic does not issue a certificate when repairing or replacing the tachometer and does not submit the certificate to the vehicle holder, a sanction up to CZK 50,000 may be assessed. If the vehicle holder does not submit the tachometer repair or replacement certificate to the Technical Inspection Station with the next inspection, he/she may face a penalty up to CZK 10,000. Changing a record of the actual mileage on the km counter may lead to a penalty of up to CZK 500,000 for any natural person or legal entity.

"Anybody who illegally reduces the mileage will face the half-a-million sanction. But this sanction shall mostly apply to individuals and companies doing this against a fee. We do not intend to damage drivers who just buy a car which was subject to mileage fraud. This is my appeal to all those intending to buy a car: check the car properly," says the transport minister Dan Ťok.

In practise, the tachometer status is recorded during the technical inspection at Technical Inspection Stations or Emission Measurement Stations and also the police can find out such an offence during the technical road inspection. If lower mileage is found on the tachometer during the technical inspection than that recorded at the last inspection, then the holder of such a vehicle has 30 days to remove such a serious defect (type B). During this period, he/she must provide a valid km counter repair or replacement certificate, otherwise the vehicle will lose its technical fitness.

If a company or natural person who did the repair or replaced the counter fails to issue the certificate, he/she/it will face a sanction of up to CZK 50,000. If the tachometer mileage was illegally reduced, then the individual or company who did this fraud will face a penalty up to CZK 500,000. "We have been actively addressing fraud connected with mileage reduction for many years. The first step was the kontrolatachometru.cz app, followed by the introduction of photodocumentation at Technical Inspection Stations and Emission Measurement Stations. For next year we are preparing an upgrade of the information system of the Technical Inspection Stations that will automatically warn about all cases where lower mileage was detected during the technical inspection than that recorded at the previous inspection," adds the minister of transport Dan Ťok.

Drivers can check the free public database www.kontrolatachometru.cz where they can find out the tachometer status recorded at the last technical inspection and previous visits to the Technical Inspection Stations. Offences connected with mileage reduction are handled by regional authorities and the Ministry of Transport is the appeal body; applies to vehicle inspected after January 1, 2016 since when compulsory photodocumentation was introduced and the offence must have been committed after October 1, 2018. Citizens suspecting a mileage fraud on their vehicle may also report the matter to the police or municipality with extended powers.

The police, ambulances and fire rescue vehicles can drive through traffic jams faster

Odbor komunikace — Wed, 15 Aug 2018 09:48:05 GMT

"We need to align the Czech rules with Germany, Austria and (soon) Slovakia. Plus every driver should, like in the neighbouring countries, learn how to create the rescue isle already when entering the traffic jam from the back," says the transport minister Dan Ťok.

Now, cars must go aside to the right if driving in the middle or right lane and to the left if in the fast lane. The rescue isle will be therefore created in the middle lane.

"Only vehicles with the right of way may enter this space, including road administrator's vehicles and vehicles needed for removing the consequences of the traffic accident or road obstacle," the amendment says. Any unauthorised entry of the isle may be subject to a penalty up to CZK 2500. It is also important that drivers create the isle on time, i.e. already when making their way slowly through the traffic jam. Once the car has stopped, it is more difficult to go aside when the rescue vehicle is approaching from the back.

This amendment passed by the Senate also allows the vehicles of the Integrated Rescue System using the red beacon for better visibility. The changes shall apply from October after being signed by the president. BESIP will demonstrate to the drivers how to create the rescue isle and explain why it is so important for the rescue vehicles.

§ 41 par. 8 of the road traffic act:

"If the motorway or road with at least two lanes is not freely passable due to a traffic jam consisting of standing or slowly moving vehicles, drivers are obliged to create space between the driving lanes for the passage of vehicles with the right of way. To do this, drivers are allowed to enter the road shoulder of middle dividing lane. If there are more than two driving lanes in the same direction, this space shall be created between the lane which is the last on the left and the adjacent lane. Only vehicles with the right of way may enter this space, including vehicles of the road administrator and vehicles needed for the removal of the consequences of the traffic accident of road obstacle."

Two new stations will be built in Prague – Eden and Zahradní Město (Garden City)

Odbor komunikace — Wed, 15 Aug 2018 09:01:54 GMT

"The railway plays an important role in metropolitan transportation. Its significance will increase further after the completion of this project in with a four-rail track will be built in the area of the former marshalling yard in Vršovice. This project follows up the modernisation of the Prague-Hostivař station and work is also under way on another section of the fourth corridor between Sudoměřice by Tábor and Votice. It will only take a few years and we can go to the south on a continuous, modernised section from Planá nad Lužnicí in the Tábor region to the Vršovice station in Prague," said the minister of transport Dan Ťok.

"The new station in Zahradní Město and the Eden stop, situated close to the Prague Slavia football stadium, will become major hubs where passengers will change for public transportation. The platforms in Zahradní Město will lie directly above the extended underpass in street Průběžná where tram stops will be situated," the RIA CEO Jiří Svoboda lists the benefits. He adds that the existing track via Strašnice will be cancelled and its structure used for other purposes in the future.

The station in Vršovice will undergo a major transformation. A modern platform at a standard height of 550 mm above the rails will significantly improve passenger experience and provide barrier-free access to trains. The residents of Nusle will appreciate the extension of the existing underpass underneath the entire rail area of the station towards street Bartoškova. Access from the platforms to the space in front of the station will be an innovation.

Preparatory works are under way in 2018: mostly the demolition of bridges (in streets V Korytech and U Vršovického hřbitova) and road closures that are mostly scheduled for weekends. The passengers will therefore not face any serious complications yet.

The entire project will entail some shorter operation interruptions. The first continuous three-day closure in the direction to Malešice – Vršovice is scheduled for the first quarter of 2019. Further restrictions will apply during the further stages in station Praha-Vršovice since the spring of 2019 according to the construction schedule of the underpass extension and rails and bridges construction. A three-week closure of the tram line between street Průběžná and Zahradní Město is needed for the demolition of the railway bridge.

The project called "Optimisation of Track Section Prague Hostivař – Praha main railway station Part II – Prague Hostivař – Praha main railways station" is co-funded by the EU from the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) programme. The expected construction costs are CZK 4 419 960 495. The EU support totals 82.14% of eligible costs, so the maximum subsidy is EUR 110 309 931, i.e. about CZK 3 billion. National funding is provided by the State Fund for Transport Infrastructure. The companies Metrostav, Swietelsky Rail CZ and SMP CZ are the contractors. The length of the section to be straightened is 6070 m.

Name of project	Optimisation of Track Section Prague Hostivař – Praha main railway station Part II – Prague Hostivař – Praha main railways station
Investor	Railway Infrastructure Authority (RIA), state organisation
Contractors	Metrostav a.s. Swietelsky Rail CZ SMP CZ
Civil engineer	SUDOP PRAHA a.s.
Commencement	05/2018
Completion	10/2021
Total construction costs	CZK 4 419 960 000Kč excl. VAT
Approved EU contribution	CZK 3,000,000,000

The new D1 motorway section by Jihlava has opened for drivers after two years again

Odbor komunikace — Mon, 13 Aug 2018 16:22:59 GMT

This is the first of the four modernised sections to be opened during the next two months. Sections Velké Meziříčí – Lhotka, Hořice – Koberovice (both will be opened in September) and Ostředek – Šternov (to be opened in October) will follow. The total length of these sections is 20.35 km. This means that at the end of 2018 drivers will have 90 km of the D1 motorway modernised, i.e. 13 sections out of 20 will be completed and two under construction.

Details

Section 15, EXIT 112 Jihlava – EXIT 119 Velký Beranov
length: 5980 m
road surface size: 184 184 sqm
number of civil structures: 28

Contractor: Vodohospodářské stavby, s r. o. + FIRESTA-Fišer, rekonstrukce, stavby a.s. + BT Beton – Technik GmbH
Price according to the contract: CZK 590 million excl. VAT
Modernisation period: 08/2016 – 08/2018

D1 – 21 sections
Condition	Number of sections	Km
Opened	10	69.3
Under construction	4	33.4
Tender in progress (the Children of the Earth civic association attacked the building permit)	3	33.6
In preparation	4	26.1

Po dvou letech prací jsme dnes ráno otevřeli řidičům úsek dálnice D1 mezi Jihlavou a Velkýn Beranovem.

Jedná se o první ze čtyř úseků, které zprovozníme během následujících 2 měsíců. Následovat budou úseky Velké Meziříčí – Lhotka, Hořice – Koberovice a Ostředek – Šternov. pic.twitter.com/PWkjdVpKS2
— Ministerstvo dopravy (@min_dopravy) 13. srpna 2018

No more compulsory light bulbs in vehicles and no need to replace expired first aid boxes any more

Odbor komunikace — Thu, 09 Aug 2018 10:11:39 GMT

"It has become useless to carry light bulbs and fuses in the car. Drivers of modern cars have such a replacement done in the service anyway. Following an agreement with the Ministry of Health, we decided that a first air box without the mask and patch with a pad is sufficient and can also be expired," explains the minister of transport Dan Ťok. Scissors, which were not often used anyway according to the ministry and are hence dispensable, can now be also missing in the first aid kit.

The amendment to decree No. 341/2014 Coll. on the approval of technical fitness for road traffic also simplifies and refines the duty of having a spare wheel in the vehicle and a set for replacing the wheel (a hand jack).

"Vehicles with tyres allowing the car to reach a workshop in the event of a tyre defect and indicating the defect do not need to have a spare wheel. The vehicles can also have the quick fix set for the damaged tyre instead of a reserve wheel. The third exception are vehicles covered by assistance service, providing wheel replacement or tyre repair on the spot across the Czech Republic," the minister adds.

After being negotiated by the government's council for legal affairs, the proposed changes to the decree shall be effective from October 1, 2018.

New wording of the decree stipulating compulsory vehicle equipment

Compulsory vehicle equipment

Spare wheel and accessories necessary for wheel change

1. A spare wheel and accessories necessary for wheel change shall mean

a spare wheel, i.e. rim with tyre attached sufficiently to the bracket ensuring that the force arising from taking the wheel off the bracket or placing the wheel into the bracket will not exceed 490 N; if more wheel dimensions are used on the vehicle, it must be possible to use the spare wheel for all such dimensions or the vehicle must be equipped with spare wheels for all dimensions,
nut key or vehicle wheel screws and
hand-held jack with a load bearing capacity equalling at least the biggest technically permissible weight per axle of the most loaded vehicle axle or vehicle system, or equalling the weight of the vehicle part being lifted from the biggest technically permissible vehicle weight when lifting this part in a way stipulated by the manufacturer for using a jack.

2. A spare wheel and accessories needed for wheel replacement is the compulsory equipment in vehicle categories M, N, O and R, with the exception of

vehicles where all wheels are fitted with tyres of a special design and defect indication allowing an emergency ride with the defect,
vehicles equipped with means for repairing the damaged tyre without disassembly, allowing an emergency ride,
vehicles with corresponding contractual coverage based on which the damaged tyre will be repaired at any moment across the Czech Republic,
city buses, fire rescue vehicles and garbage trucks operating in a limited area within the operating range of the service of its provider, trailers of categories O1 or R1, fire trailers or R category trainers operated in a limited area within the oprating range of the service of its provider or
vehicles belonging to a vehicle system if another vehicle of the same system is equipped with a spare wheel of the same dimension, design and accessories needed for wheel replacement.

First aid kit

1. The first aid kit must contain

1.
a)

Medical material quantity (units)

Disposable bandage with 1 pad 1
(minimum width 8 cm, sorption capacity minimum 800g/m2)

Disposable bandage with 2 pads 1
(minimum width 8 cm, sorption capacity minimum 800g/m2)

Rubber tying bandage (60 x 1 250 mm) 1

Rubber gloves (latex), surgical, packaged 1

(hereafter only "motorist's first aid kit"),
b)

Medical material quantity (units)

Kit size
I. II. III.

Disposable bandage with 1 pad 3 5 10
(minimum width 8 cm, sorption capacity minimum 800g/m2)

Disposable bandage with 2 pads 3 5 10
(minimum width 8 cm, sorption capacity minimum 800g/m2)

Smooth patch spool 1 2 4
(size 2.5 cm x 5 m, minimum adhesive capacity 7 N/25 mm)

Rubber tying bandage (60 x 1 250 mm) 1 3 5

Rubber gloves (latex), surgical, packaged 1 2 4

Isothermic foil (minimum dimension 200 x 140 cm) 1 1 1

Note: the first aid car kit of size III can be replaced by two size II kits

(hereafter only "first aid car kit").

2. Motorist's first aid kit must be part of L category vehicle equipment, except for mopeds or motorised bikes.

3. The first aid car kit must be part of vehicle equipment except for L category vehicles, single-axle tractors with a trailer or motorised trailers:

vehicles for mass transportation of people with more than 80 passengers of size III; for city public transportation vehicles a first aid car kit of size II is sufficient,
vehicle for mass transportation of people with up to including 80 passengers of size II,
any other size I motor vehicle with at least four wheels.

4. Fire rescue vehicles must be equipped with the corresponding type of first aid kit stipulated by another legal regulation4).

5. The contents of the first aid kit are placed in a separate case. The first air kit is placed in the vehicle in a place with no daylight. The storage compartment for the first air kit must be dry and clean and easy to access. In vehicles for mass transportation of people the first aid kit is placed in a designated and accessible place inside the vehicle intended for passengers.

Warning triangle

The warning triangle is a piece of compulsory equipment in vehicles approved according to regulation No. 27 of the Economic Commission for Europe except for category L and Z vehicles, single-axle tractors with a trailer and vehicles with a total width of less than 1 m.

Fire extinguisher

1. The fire extinguisher means a fire extinguisher with corresponding extinguishing power in accordance with the applicable technical regulation5). The fire extinguisher must be assessed by a certified person for product compliance7).

2. Vehicles of categories M2, M3 or ambulances must be equipped with a fire extinguisher:

vehicles of categories M2 or M3 with maximum 22 seats for the transportation of people except for the driver seat must be equipped with one or more fire extinguishers with minimum extinguishing power 21 A or 113 B,
any other vehicles of categories M2 or M3 must be equipped with one or several fire extinguishers with minimum extinguishing power 43 A or 183 B or with a fire extinguisher in accordance with regulation No. 107 of the Economic Commission for Europe,
ambulances must be equipped with a fire extinguishers with extinguishing power 34 B.

3. The fire extinguisher is attached in the vehicle in a designated bracket in the vertical or horizontal direction in a way ensuring that it can safely withstand acceleration of at least 6 g in the direction of the front crash of the vehicle and is placed in a well visible and easily accessible place, and one fire extinguisher is installed immediately next to the driver position.

A multi-level crossing proposal was prepared for the Studénka railway crossing

Odbor komunikace — Fri, 20 Jul 2018 07:51:25 GMT

"The cancellation of the problematic crossing, construction of an underpass and a new road for trucks will finally solve the situation in a place where three people died in 2015 and many were seriously injured. The RIA has preliminarily selected eight similar places where multi-level crossings will be built during the next years, improving safety on the railway," says the minister of transport Dan Ťok.

The crossing in Studénka saw an extremely serious accident in July 2015, but there are seven more dangerous places where the RIA is working on a plan to rebuild the crossing and has been working on the Zoning Permit Design. The preparation and award of the building permit and contractor selection can take several years. Besides the necessary change of the urban development plan of the town of Studénka which the town representatives will also discuss at their meeting in the second half of 2018, the RIA must still acquire eight land plots that have two private owners. When acquired, the condition of the town for the approval of the urban development plan amendment will be met. After that the RIA can apply for the legally effective zoning permit with the competent building authority and start work on the civil design. If the design preparation runs smoothly and all necessary legal steps have been taken, construction could start in 2020.

Správa železniční dopravní cesty připravila vizualizaci přejezdu ve Studénce, v létě ji budeme schvalovat. Bude ještě potřeba vykoupit několik pozemků a vybrat zhotovitele, práce by ale měly začít v roce 2020. pic.twitter.com/mhywJPubeo
— Ministerstvo dopravy (@min_dopravy) 20. července 2018

The primary objective is to cancel the level crossing of the rail line with the road. A new underpass will be built instead. Its clear height was discussed with the Integrated Rescue System representatives, the road owner and administrator and the town of Studénka. The clear height of 3.7m was chosen for the underpass which will deliberately prevent trucks from passing through. A road will be reclassified after construction completion from a category III road to a "local road". Heavy trucks will be diverted outside road III/46427. The replacement route for trucks will be road II/464 and the D1 motorway. Access to the commercial zone will be provided from road II/464 via street Butovická on a new access road. The design also covers the relocation of road III/46427, placing the crossing with street R. Tomáška farther to reach the legally required distance from the crossing. The new connection with the commercial zone will take trucks away from street R. Tomáška, so restrictions will of course apply to trucks all over the town.

"Should the multi-level crossing is built in Studénka, we have to buy a lot of land and build a by-pass route for trucks. The new road for trucks will not only make railway traffic safer, but reduce the intensity of transit traffic in the town and so improve the quality of life for local residents. Having studied the project plan, my estimation of the costs is about CZK 700 million," says the RIA CEO Jiří Svoboda.

The construction of the multi-level crossings is not the only way to improve safety for trains and cars. Modernisation and reconstruction of existing railway crossings is another method. Cooperating the Police of the Czech Republic and the Railway Authority, the RIA selects dozens of railway crossings every year as candidates for modernisation and safety improvements. Most of them are crossings where there have been repeated accidents, or crossings equipped with the most out-of-date safety systems of warning crosses only. Since the beginning of 2018 eight crossings, that had been equipped only with warning crosses, have been equipped with a safety system. Another eleven crossings which already had red lights were upgraded and bars were added. The RIA plans to invest CZK 814 million in different methods of safety improvement on 82 level crossings in 2018. The RIA seeks to reduce the number of crossing as such. In 2017 they managed to cancel 16 crossings, most of which were field road crossings or single-purpose crossings only.

The RIA has also been working on the reconstruction of seven level crossings which is now in a different semi-completion stage. On route Břeclav - Přerov this applies to three crossings in Halenkovice, Rohatec, Napajedla and Žlutava where the expected construction period is in 2021 - 2022. For 2020 - 2021 the reconstruction of conventional crossings on these routes is foreseen: Česká Třebová - Praha with a level crossing in Uhersko. Another multi-level crossing is under preparation on route Přerov - Bohumín, specifically in Polanka nad Odrou, and a railway overpass will replace the conventional crossing on route Přerov - Olomouc in the city part of Olomouc-Holice.

The high-speed rail line connects the Czechs with the Germans

Odbor komunikace — Tue, 17 Jul 2018 12:41:25 GMT

"We are preparing an international agreement on the construction of a new railway connection between Ústí nad Labem and Dresden which will govern the joint cross-border tunnel through the Krušné hory mountains. At the same time, we want to integrate this high-speed rail line into the TEN-T network," says the Czech minister of transport after the meeting.

A Czech-German Expert Group was set up in Berlin in May which negotiated the plan of operating the cross-border tunnel according to German regulations. The RIA cooperates with Deutsche Bahn Netz on the tunnel design. A joint agreement shall be drafted until the end of 2018, governing the next steps in the preparation of the cross-border section and counting the resources needed for preparation in 2019 and 2020.

"The route from Pilsen to Munich via Domažlice and Furth im Wald is another priority railway connection. It is still this year that the tunnels between Pilsen and Rokycany will open," minister Ťok added. The reconstruction of route Pilsen – Domažlice – state border in a length of approx. 70 km shall raise the track speed up to 200 km/h and reduce the travel time from Prague to Munich to less than four hours.

The ministers were discussing other topics as well, such as the need for building the Děčín Navigation Level, allowing navigation on the Labe river, and cross-border cooperation projects in the testing of self-driving vehicles. Minister Ťok also invited the federal minister Scheuer to Prague to an official visit.

Dan Tok, Verkehrsminister von Tschechien, zu Besuch bei BM @AndiScheuer @min_dopravy @tok5934 pic.twitter.com/z0S7GahjMX
— BMVI (@BMVI) 17. července 2018

RIA continues with preparations for the relocation of the Brno Railway Junction

Odbor komunikace — Tue, 10 Jul 2018 08:35:09 GMT

"We are implementing the government decisions from 2002 and 2015 in which it was decided that the Brno railway junction shall be moved. On top of this, the City of Brno and the South Moravian Region have also agreed on this. After about 72 years we have reached an agreement on how to proceed. But the discussion must not stop, we must work hard," said the minister of transport Dan Ťok.

The Central Commission of the Ministry of Transportation chose the so-called River Variant for the Brno Railway Junction on May 30. It made this decision after studying the Feasibility Study and reviewing opinions of experts and railways operators, statements of affected towns and the region, the RIA and the Steering Committee for the Brno Railway Junction.

"As this is a big investment, I will provide further materials and information to the government, showing where exactly the money shall be invested to ensure this investment will be efficient," minister Ťok added. The total investment costs excluding VAT are about CZK 43.1 billion, of which CZK 40.8 billion is the railway part and 2.3 billion is the connecting urban infrastructure.

The government was also notified that the RIA will prepare the Technical and Financial Assessment of the modifications needed for higher capacity and stability of the Traffic Prognosis of freight transport in the selected Variant before they assign the next design level.

When preparing this document, the RIA must take into account, among other things, the merging of passenger and freight trains into a single multi-corridor, collisions in the direction towards the Brno-Maloměřice station and the servicing of the Brno Terminal. The technical solution must also allow the possible construction of the so-called North-South Urban Train in Brno.

The relocated road I/62 Děčín - Vilsnice has opened for drivers

Odbor komunikace — Mon, 09 Jul 2018 14:49:21 GMT

"The relocated road is very interesting from the technical point of view. We must realise that this is not a green-field project, but a structure lying within a city. This means that the project was facing many challenges such as significantly different routes of utilities and sand beddings, which brought many troubles with the road construction subject to stringent quality regulations. Many illegal dump sites, which somebody set up on the construction sites, had to be removed. Let me thank the contractor for its huge efforts to complete the project despite all these challenges", said the RSD CEO Jan Kroupa at the opening ceremony.

With the road in a new position, the traffic intensity in the commercial zone has decreased, safety has improved and the traffic is now smoother. Noise and emissions in the residential zone have also dropped. The entire section lies within the city of Děčín, so there is a speed limit of 50 km/h.

Road I/62 is the most frequently used road connecting the cities of Ústí nad Labem and Děčín. This road in the new position has great significance for this intercity connection and is, together with road I/13, part of the international route E442 – an important connection between regional centres and the industrial agglomeration of the regions of Karlovy Vary, Ústí nad Labem and Liberec.

You can now get the driving licence in any municipal department with extended powers

Odbor komunikace — Wed, 27 Jun 2018 09:36:21 GMT

Starting in July, all basic changes regarding the driving licence can be arranged in the closest municipal department with extended powers. This principle applies: The driver picks up the driving licence in the same department where he/she applied for it. You can find the list of all municipal departments on the interactive map of the Ministry of Transport.

Partial relaxing of local competence

"Applicants can now get their first driving licence at the closest municipal authority if they have passed the final exam at the driving school. Local authorities now have even more powers such as the replacement of an expired or invalid licence, issuance of the memory card for the digital tachograph and the international driving licence. Nobody has to travel to his/her place of permanent residence any more like it has been so far," explains the transport minister deputy Ladislav Němec and adds: "They will also help you here if you want to change your family name after your wedding, if you have lost your licence or when your licence has been damaged or stolen."

The system will get photos from other registers and/or the worker at the desk will make a photo of the applicant

Applicants have been required to bring their own photos to the authority. This is now a matter of the past.

"We have equipped all municipalities with extended powers with cameras which will take a photo of the applicant directly at the desk. They also have tablets where the applicant enters his/her digital signature. This is now the end printed driving licence applications," explains Stanislav Dvořák, head of the Driver Agenda Section at the Ministry of Transport.

No photo of the applicant will be needed in some cases. The system of the Ministry of Transport will send a query to the system of the Interior Ministry asking whether the applicant already has a digital photo from his/her passport or ID card. If such a photo can be used (it is available and still resembles the applicant), no photo shooting at the desk will be necessary.

The only exception when a paper photo will be still needed is the application for the international driving licence, because the format is strictly designed by international agreements.

A change in the place of residence has no impact on the driving licence

When the place of residence changed, the driver was obliged to report such a change to the authority which subsequently issued a new licence. This duty no longer applies. Starting in July, the driving licence will no longer contain information on the place of residence. This also applies to existing, valid driving licences.

Exceptions when the applicant must visit the authority in the place of his/her residence

Some situations will still require that the applicant comes to the authority with extended power in the place of his/her residence. This will happen when the driving licence has been taken or shall be returned by the police, when driving restrictions apply or for other situations not directly connected with the records kept by the municipality with extended powers in the place of the driver's residence.

Municipalities with extended powers must prepare the the change, so they will close for one and a half days

"Municipalities with extended powers must prepare for the transition to the new system, which is why on Friday June 29 they will closed for the whole day and on Thursday 28 July they will closed for the afternoon, i.e. no driving licence applications or applications for driver's professional competence certificates can be handled. We are pointing this out in advance, so that nobody is surprised. Do not leave your driving licence stuff for the last two working days in July," warns Jan Paroubek, head of the Driving Applications and Technology Section of the state enterprise Cendis, and adds: "From July 2 the State Printing Works of Securities will no longer accept applications with printed photos. Everything will be done in the electronic way. Therefore, the municipalities must process until the end of the month all the printed applications they have accepted."

Changes to administrative fees

The replacement of an expired driving licence will be free of charge like it has been.

The fee for the issuance of the new licence rises from CZK 50 to CZK 200. Also the fee for accelerated issuance of the licence within five working days rises from CZK 500 to CZK 700. "The driving licence issuance fee has been the same for many years. We paid CZK 20 for the pink books issued before 1898 and at the beginning of 1993 the price was raised to the current CZK 50. This means that the fee for the driving licence issuance has not changed for more than 25 years. It driving licence issuance will now cost a bit more, but this higher fee will be compensated by higher convenience. Applicants do not need to come with a printed photo and do not have to travel to the location of their place of permanent residence any more, which for some people meant taking a day off," says Stanislav Dvořák.

Preparations and system testing

No new information system had to be procured as a result of the more relaxed driving agenda, but the existing Central Registry of Drivers was upgraded and the digital tachograph system modified.

The state enterprise Cendis obtained the required equipment for the municipalities. "The offices of the municipalities with extended powers are now ready in terms of the new technology. The new systems have been tested since the beginning of June, so that everything is up and running in July. We have trained all staff from the whole country very thoroughly, demonstrated the system to them and answered questions from practice," added Jan Paroubek.

How are driving licences made?

Driving licences have many security features and are centrally personalised, which is why they must be made in the State Printing Works of Securities. "They are made under strict conditions defined by the national or international legislation. The production quality of Czech driving licences is the world top quality. Thousands of driving licences are made every day and this year up to 5 000 units are made every day," explains Ondřej Hyršl, head of production in the State Printing Works of Securities.

Driving licences are personalised by laser engraving to polycarbonate cards with specific design and receive a number of security features. The positive relief coining on both sides of the licence, the changing image in the right bottom corner of the front side, the visually changing logo print with "CZ" letters, etc. are just some examples. But also this driving licence design has undergone a development since 2004. To be specific, we added another security feature last year: tactile engraving of some items on both card sides.

Questions from driving licence applicants

Does the validity period change for newly issued driving licences?

No, these changes have no impact on the validity period. This means that the driving licence expires after ten years for motorcycle drivers, car drivers and others. Drivers with the authorisation to drive a truck or bus must replace their cards every five years.

How long does it take to get the new driving licence?

The standard period is 20 days since application submission. If you however need the driving licence faster for whatever reason, you can apply for an accelerated issuance within five working days. It will just cost you more. Those who apply for the driving licence for the first time (those who have just passed the driving school exams) cannot make use of the shorter, five-day period. The reason is that the administration with the first driving licence is more complex.

Do I need a new driving licence after changing my family name?

One of the situations when the driver does need to visit the authority to change the licence is the change of name. In this situation, the driving licence needs to be replaced and the same applies to all other documents.

Transport

Odbor komunikace — Wed, 27 Jun 2018 06:57:15 GMT

We will prepare a concept change of the building law in the area of priority infrastructure projects. We will amend and upgrade the Act on the Acceleration of the Construction of Transport Infrastructure and the Act on Line Structures, so that approvals of publicly beneficial structures are simplified, obstructions in the permitting processes for transport structures are reduced and the unnecessary bureaucratic burden within the permitting processes is cut.

We will adopt rules for regional transport infrastructure funding (category II and III roads) through the State Fund for Transport Infrastructure (SFDI) with the aim of providing CZK 4 billion of funds p.a.

We will intensify the construction of motorways on all main routes, particularly D1, D3, D4, D6, D7, D11, D35, D48, D49, D52 and D55 and complete the full modernisation of the D1 motorway between Prague and Brno.

By 2021 we will have opened 210 km of motorways, of which 110 km will be new motorways and 100 km will be the modernised D1. By 2021 we will have started with the construction of another 180 km of motorways.

Towns on category I roads must have bypasses, so that transit traffic does not pass through their centres. On category I roads we will build 130 km of bypasses that will relieve towns and municipalities heavily affected by traffic. This includes, among other things, bypasses or their other sections around Slaný, Ostrava-Poruba, Hradec Králové, Otrokovice, Frýdek-Místek, Klatovy, Jaroměř, Znojmo, Břeclav, Strakonice, Opava, Karviná and many others. By 2021 we will begin building the key part of the Prague ring road D0 511 between Běchovice and D1. We will obtain planning permits for the 518 and 519 projects between Ruzyně and Březiněves and we will obtain the positive EIA statement for the 520 Březiněves – Satalice project.

We will involve private investors in the construction of the transport infrastructure in the form of the public-private partnership (PPP). By implementing the pilot PPP project, we will ensure the extension and further operation of the unfinished section of the D4 motorway. Based on our experience with the project, this procedure will be used for other motorways as well (e.g. D7, D6, D3 or D35).

No later than in 2010 we will have solved the electronic toll for trucks over 3.5 t. Further extension of the toll system does must not be done for financial reasons, but it must be the traffic regulation tool as well. If alternate roads start being used and suffer damage because trucks will start bypassing a paid section, we will pass legislation allowing municipalities and regional departments to regulate transit traffic to prevent even more damage to roads nearby buildings and mitigate the risk for pedestrians and other road users.

We will make it easier for citizens to communicate with the state administration in the area of vehicle registration and in other registers in the transportation sector. Following the amendment to the act which has already been passed, we will make sure that every driver will be able to get his/her driving license even outside his/her permanent place of residence in any office with extended powers, without the need for completing unnecessary forms and coming with his/her own photograph. After introducing ID cards with a chip, everything can be handled from home.

Instead of motorway stickers we will introduce an electronic motorway coupon that can be purchased through a mobile app or on the Internet.

Safety will be among our priorities. The growing intensity of road traffic and modern and fast vehicles combined with new influences require even better prevention and awareness. In this respect we want to focus, among other things, on the youngest drivers who must not pose a fatal threat for themselves and others. We will pass legislation allowing a temporary driving licence with a limited two-year validity during which the young drivers will have to go through trainings to improve their driving skills and abilities, so they can handle crisis situations.

The government will introduce significant discounts on train and bus fares for senior citizens aged over 65 and for pupils and students up to 26 years of age.

We will create the conditions for cross-sectoral cooperation in freight transport, so that railway and water transport provide services for road hauliers. This means that we will take EU resources to support the development of combined transport terminals. The aim is to create a container transshipment point that will ensure that only the initial collection and final distribution takes place on the road. The longer travel on the transport route should be by rail or by water.

The state-guaranteed public passenger railway transport will be ensured in a minimum scope of CZK 7.4 billion p.a., which represents almost 37 million train km per year on 28 long-distance lines. Our objective is to improve the quality of our service and travelling culture through systematic support of car fleet renewal, and use of modern information systems and technologies.

We will continue with the liberalisation on the railway market. Liberalisation and the arrival of competitors in the railway passenger sector must be gradual and take into account the fact that Czech Railways are burdened with the cost of overhead fares and also provide the service of less attractive remote or regional lines subject to a public service. Czech Railways, the national provider, must be effectively controlled and act as a non-political entity.

We will repair at least sixty major station buildings for greater passenger comfort. This include for example the railway station in Most, Prague-Smíchov or Křižanov. The unused space of the station buildings will be offered for use to the public administration or commercial entities.

We will support the development of parking capacity around railway stations (P+R) in cooperation with municipalities. We will support the development of the cycling infrastructure (B+R) not only by railway stations but also bus stops.

We want to create a uniform integrated transportation system based on the principle of a single ticket and uniform transportation rules. All this regardless of which transportation company the passenger uses.

We will continue with the modernisation of national and regional railway lines, including electrification of important non-electrified lines where this makes sense. Even railways must be made safer, so we want to focus on railway crossings and the introduction of ETCS is our priority. By the end of the election period, we will fix the routes of the high-speed railway lines, as foreseen, in the zoning and planning documentation of the regions and progress with design preparation. Feasibility studies will be prepared for the most essential connections. The priority axes are Berlin – Dresden – Ústí nad Labem – Prague, Prague – Brno – Břeclav and Brno – Přerov – Ostrava. For the railway connection Prague-Kladno with a turning to the Václav Havel airport we will get the planning decision and progress significantly with the property preparation, and for some parts we will obtain the building permit.

By approving the Water Transport Concept, finalising the EIA processes and starting the planning proceedings for the implementation of navigation levels Děčín and Přelouč, we will have come closer to the creation of sufficient navigation conditions on the Elbe-Vltava waterway.

The government will decide on the next steps after the completion of the feasibility study for the Danube-Odra-Elbe waterway project, now in progress.

Drivers will be facing many traffic restrictions. Better to be ready for them

Odbor komunikace — Tue, 26 Jun 2018 11:17:21 GMT

To be able to duly plan your trip in advance and safely reach your holiday destination, we have updated our map where you will see the most important road traffic restrictions you may encounter on the way.

"We recommend everybody going on a holiday to plan the route and check where he/she can expect problems and which sections to avoid, so that the driver does not get confused on the spot and does not improvise. Our interactive map on our website shall help you. Going on the holiday is not like racing," said the transport minister Dan Ťok at a press conference.

Very sad statistics

The statistics speak a very sad language. Most people die in July and August on the roads. One fifth of all people are killed or heavily injured during the summer holiday. Even when we could see a falling trend in fatal accidents, this is a very risky period: in 2017 it was 101 people who died on the roads. So who are the most vulnerable groups? It is children, cyclists and motorcyclists.
Lack of attention is among the most frequent causes of accidents

Traffic intensity, traffic restrictions and stress we have carried from our workplace unfortunately negatively affect the road situation. But there are things we can affect ourselves. According to statistics and a sociological research within the "Nepozornostzabiji" campaign ("lack of attention will kill you") of the Czech association of insurance companies, including BESIP and the Czech Police, lack of attention while driving is the one of the most frequent causes of accidents, followed by situations when the driver is handling his/her phone and other communication devices, navigation, etc. The penalty points system shows that holding the phone while driving is the third most frequent traffic offence. Last year there we about 50 000 such offences – and this only includes cases which the police classified as such, just imagine how many more there are ...). "Up to one third of drivers admit they are sending SMS or chatting while driving, which is a true warning," said Tomáš Neřold.

Once the summer holidays are starting, we must mention that fatigue leads to lack of attention and accidents. Fatigue makes up to 6.8% and lack of knowledge of the route about 6% for men.

The road legislation package turned into fight between the east and west of the EU

Odbor komunikace — Thu, 14 Jun 2018 10:58:20 GMT

"The protectionism in some countries has now fully surfaced. They are boycotting what we have already agreed on", the Czech MEP Martina Dlabajová (ALDE), who leads the negotiations on the social aspects of the mobility package on behalf of the fraction of the Liberals and democrats in the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs (EMPL), commented on today's vote.

Stricter rules were originally supposed to apply to truck drivers sent to a different country. Countries like France, Belgium and Germany – those who decided to protect themselves against cheaper competitors from Central and Eastern Europe – required a change. She regards the compromise achieved in the special regulation for the road traffic sector from last week, which also reflects the interests of the Czech Republic, as successful. "A balanced compromise was achieve last week that can be applied in practice and that will finally provide social protection and decent conditions for truck drivers, maintain competition on the single market and even boost the market. Now, however, we are back with restricting and undermining the freedom on the single market," she added.

The MEPs stopped the TRAN vote today and thus prevented the social aspects of the package going directly into the three-party negotiations between the EP, the Commission and the Council. The text must now go through the vote of the entire range again and face change proposals that may significantly affect the optimistic prospects of a balanced regulation.

Long disputes will still accompany the road package, evidence of which are the negotiations on the level of the EU Council which met by the end of last week. The Czech transport minister Dan Ťok came to defend the rights of Czech shipping businesses to the meeting of ministers. "It's time to close the long-year disputes on social dumping and protectionist policies. The Czech Republic will continue acting as a reasonable partner and seek dialogue with the western states to find a compromise acceptable for everyone," said the transport minister in Luxembourg. The member states did not find any agreement and the Council position was postponed.

The western states are obviously not interested in dialogue and have been obstructing any and all efforts of countries from Central and Eastern Europe who have already made many concessions. "We see no will among your west-European colleagues to solve the chaotic situation on the market. They are hiding their efforts to expel our shipping businesses from their markets behind their alleged care of the good of drivers. But they fail to realise that they are actually achieving the opposite and threaten the free market. I am very sorry to see that the discussion on the road package turned into pure political fight. We must realise that not only drivers and shipping businesses are at stake, but this is about the principle, the future of Europe and preservation of Europe's interests," Dlabajová closed her criticism.

Ťok was defending the rights of Czech shipping companies in Luxembourg

Odbor komunikace — Fri, 08 Jun 2018 13:37:41 GMT

"The long disputes on social dumping and protectionist policies. The Czech Republic will continue acting in a constructive way and seek a dialogue with the western countries to find a compromise that is acceptable for everybody," minister Ťok said at the meeting of ministers.

The EU has been long divided over the topic of sending drivers abroad. The priority for the Czech Republic does not change: rules for sending workers abroad shall be taken out of international road traffic rules as much as possible. The case of the Czech driver who won the litigation in Germany and had his salary levelled out with the local rates may be the precedence for more disputes that may eventually affect big corporations who are ordering shipping to abroad.

"On top of that, if the new rules are too strict for the shipping businesses, they will start bypassing them, e.g. through the Schwarzsystem. The thing is that self-employed drivers are exempt from the rules," minister Dan Ťok adds.

The ministers also discussed connectivity in air transport where they managed to reach an agreement on the protection of competition in the air transport industry, allowing the EU to accept corrective measures in instances when an EU airline was damaged by a third country. Other topics included the drawing-down of the new CEF II scheme for 2021-2027 in which EUR 30.6 billion were allocated for transportation projects.

The Council also discussed the rights and duties of railway passengers, the support of combined transport and use of clean vehicles in the public sector.

The train trip from Prague to Tábor will not take only one hour

Odbor komunikace — Tue, 05 Jun 2018 08:25:09 GMT

The modernisation of the Sudoměřice – Votice route is among the last pieces of the set of structures on the 4th transit corridor connecting Germany and Austria via Děčín, Prague and České Budějovice. A second track, two tunnels and a new railway stop Červený Újezd will be added to the existing single track. The construction works shall be completed in 2021. The train speed will to up to 160 km/h, which will cut the travel time for express trains between Prague and Tábor to one hour.

"The modernisation of the railway connection between the Central and South Bohemian Regions is exceptional due to its scope and technical challenges. At a time when almost no underground civil structures are under construction in the Czech Republic, the twin tunnels with a length of 1.5km are an important piece of civil work. And it will be the tunnels that will significantly reduce the travel time from Prague to South Bohemia, said the RIA CEO Jiří Svoboda.

OHL ŽS is the building contractor. "This construction project means for us that we can continue our long tradition of railway construction, apply our great experience in the construction of corridor projects and use our staff and machines in such essential domains as the railway superstructure and substructure, bridges, tunnels and roads.“ said the OHL ŽS CEO Roman Kocúrek.

A significant portion of the Sudoměřice – Votice route will leave the existing footprint, which shortens the distance by two km. The construction workers will build two tunnels – Mezno with a length of 840 m and Deboreč with 660 m. The existing stations Střezimíř, Ješetice and Heřmaničky will be consolidated into a single station Červený Újezd. Stops Mezno, Střezimíř, Červený Újezd, Ješetice and Heřmaničky will be added. Three long bridge estacades will be built in the deep valley between stops Ješetice and Heřmaničky. The longest of them will have 244 m.

The construction work started on May 1. Since then, plants have been cut, site equipment installed and access roads set up in the future route. Cut-and-covered and driven parts will be built during the next months on both new tunnels. Consolidation embankments will be made around the supports of the future estacades and small bridges will be built.

There will be only short (one-day) route closures during 2018. Specifically, this will happen in September and November when support buses will start operating in section Chotoviny – Olbramovice. A four-day closure is scheduled for March and April of 2019. In the spring of 2021 the section will be closed for one more week.

The total investment costs of project "Modernisation of the Sudoměřice – Votice Route" amount to CZK 7 159 049 000 excl. VAT. The application for co-funding of this project from the EU Cohesion Fund Operational Programme Transportation 2014–2020 was submitted by the end of 2017 to the EU. If approved, the EU can contribute up to CZK 5 151 794 403. National funding is provided by the State Fund for Transport Infrastructure.

Name of project	Modernisation of the Sudoměřice – Votice route
Investor	Railway Administration Authority, state organisation
Contractor	OHL ŽS
Length	19.9 km
New switches	13 units
Railway bridges, culverts and underpasses	48 units
Length of noise protection walls	2 205 m
Commencement	03/2018
Completion	08/2021
Total investment costs	CZK 7 159 049 000 excl. VAT
Expected EU contribution	CZK 5,151,794,403

One kilometre of the motorway is halfway less than 10 years ago

Odbor komunikace — Mon, 04 Jun 2018 05:41:22 GMT

"In four years we opened a hundred kilometres of motorways or city bypasses. But mainly we are going to build new, and if we build 200 kilometres now, there will soon be another 150. It is certainly not true that we are building nothing. We have to focus mainly on speeding up the construction, the whole basic motorway network should have been already build, "says Prime Minister Andrej Babiš.

Currently the most advanced is the completion of the South Bohemian part of the D3 motorway, namely 19 km long sections Bošilec - Ševětín - Borek, which will be completed next year.

"We plan to start building the continuation of the motorway towards Austria this year, in particular another 20 kilometres on the bypass of České Budějovice, the construction will be finished in 2022. The three remaining sections, with a total length of 24 km, bound to the border, and then the remaining five sections of the Central Bohemian part of the D3 motorway will follow, "says Minister of Transport Dan Ťok.

This year, there are plans to open another 40 km of motorways and 1st class roads, namely four modernized sections of the D1 motorway, the D7 section near Postoloprty or the sections of roads I/22 near Strakonice in the South Bohemian Region, in Ústí nad Labem region it will be in summer the road I/62 Děčín - Vilsnice or I/34 Rouštany - Pohled in the Vysočina region.

Over the past four years, the total investment in transport was CZK 385 billion. At the same time, the prices of newly built motorways are being reduced. While one kilometre averaged 342 million crowns in 2008, the price is currently 55 percent lower, with a kilometre for 152 million.

Currently, according to the interactive map of the Ministry of Transport and the ŘSD, 121 kilometres of motorways are under construction, of which the modernization of the D1, which is basically a construction of a new motorway in the same track, is 40 kilometres. 1st class road under construction is 72 kilometres in total.

The Brno railway node is to be by the river, the Central Commission of the Ministry has decided

Odbor komunikace — Wed, 30 May 2018 10:41:57 GMT

"The solution to the railway junction in Brno has been discussed for three generations, and I am glad that that both the county and the central commission of the ministry finally agreed that the most suitable option is the one near the river. The relocation will benefit Brno in particular and will make room for the organic development of its centre, "says Minister of Transport Dan Ťok.

The Brno railway node is currently overloaded, passenger and freight trains often have a problem passing through the city. In case of the high-speed line through the Moravian metropolis, the river option is more advantageous. The main railway station moves to the place of today's Lower Railway Station, but this solution is most suitable for further use of the railway.

The Central Commission's recommended project option is referred to as Option A - River. This option is based on a valid urban plan of Brno and consists in solving the transit of the 1st transit railway corridor in a common corridor for passenger and freight transport in the track of the existing cargo way. The existing passenger way is cancelled according to this option and the main railway station is newly located approximately on the site of the existing Lower Railway Station near the Svratka River.

Option A can be implemented in four possible alternatives, varying in the Chrlice line connection to the main railway station and in arranging routes from Břeclav and from Střelice to the main railway station. Each of the specific alternatives always combines one possibility of connecting the route from Chrlice and one possibility of connecting routes from Břeclav and Střelice.

The Central Commission decided to recommend the Ab option, where it is envisaged to link the route from Chrlice to the existing Komárovka link and then to the I. TŽK. The connection of the route from Břeclav and from Střelice is made in the directional arrangement in the area of the perimeter of the passenger station. Technically, this solution is made possible by the collision-free grade separation of the two mentioned routes in the southern part of Brno railway node. In the area of the main railway station and in the following section in the direction to Brno-Židenice, the relevant modifications of the rail are proposed.

According to the Central Commission of the Ministry, all projected options, both option A - River and option B - Petrov, are economically advantageous. However, a higher risk of modification of the railway node in the current arrangement is the necessity of changes in the planning documentation from Brno, which could endanger, delay or disable the entire implementation of the railway node. Due to this reason, the commission preferred the option near the river.

"Now, before the next step of project documentation, the Railway Infrastructure Administration will prepare a technical and economic revision of modifications to increase the throughput and stability of the Ab option model of freight transport, while respecting the needs of passenger transport to the extent approved in the feasibility study," says the Central Commission in its conclusion.

The Ministry of Transport is currently preparing a detailed report for the government describing the benefits of the selected option. The costs of the entire reconstruction of the railway node are estimated to be 43.1 billion crowns (40.8 billion the railway part, 2.3 billion for the related urban infrastructure).

The Central Commission of the Ministry of Transport is composed of representatives of the Ministry, the State Fund for Transport Infrastructure and concerning the topic of the Brno railway node also the representatives of the Railway Infrastructure Administration and the Mayor of Brno were present.

Conclusion of the CC negotiations:

The Central Commission claims that all submitted project options demonstrate positive EIRR and ENPV values.
However, the risk of impossibility to implement the project is crucial for the final selection of the option due to the need for changes in the town planning documentation.
Option B, despite their advantage in terms of financial analysis, are to a great extent threatened by a political disagreement with the fundamental change of the town planning documentation by the City of Brno.
Due to these reasons, the Central Commission gives priority to the Ab option, provided that:
The SŽDC will, prior to the award of the next stage of the project documentation, process the technical and economic revision of the modifications to increase the throughput and stability of the Ab option model freight transport while respecting the passenger transport needs in extent of the approved feasibility study.
The technical and economic revision will be discussed with the relevant departments of the Ministry of Transport, before and during the processing, and will be submitted to the Central Commission for determining of the following procedure.
The technical solution will be prepared in order to enable the SJKD to be implemented.

Ministry will provide 150mil. crowns from OPT to support building up of hydrogen filling stations

Odbor komunikace — Wed, 30 May 2018 10:35:06 GMT

The Ministry of Transport announces the relevant invitation on 30 May. The deadline for submitting applications will be October 17, 2018. Applicants engaged in economic activity in the areas of: distribution of gaseous fuels through networks, gas trade through networks, research and development in the field of natural and technical sciences, gas production, production of technical gases, electrical installations, electricity trade or electricity distribution and who will submit a project for the construction of hydrogen filling stations in the Czech Republic. The scope of the project depends on the applicant's deliberation. The maximum support from eligible expenditure can reach up to 85 % in this invitation. Submitted applications for support will be assessed in particular in terms of economy, readiness and relevance of the project.

"From this first invitation on hydrogen filling stations, we would like to support the construction of at least four to five stations from dedicated funding. This is how we would like to lay the foundations for the development of hydrogen mobility in the Czech Republic, "says Minister of Transport Dan Ťok.

On the basis of the Ministry of Transport's assignment, a study on the use of hydrogen in transport was made in 2017. The main conclusions of this study also include that at least 12 hydrogen stations are needed to develop hydrogen mobility by 2025, and that in this situation, it is expected that approximately 70 hydrogen buses and 12.5 thousand passenger cars will be operated. Also due to these reasons, already in 2017, the allocation of hydrogen station support from the originally planned 100 million CZK has been increased to 200 million CZK. The second invitation for the support of hydrogen stations (allocation of 50 mil. CZK) the Ministry of Transport plans to announce in the first quarter of 2019.

The National Action Plan for Clean Mobility, which was approved by the government already in November 2015, talks about supporting the development of infrastructure for charging stations, CNG, LNG and hydrogen filling stations. In total, the Ministry of Transport has allocated 1.2 billion crowns to the program for support of alternative fuels under OPD.

More detailed information on the terms of the support is part of the detailed documentation of the invitation, which is published on the website of the OPD Managing Authority: http://web.opd.cz/vyzva-39

This invitation for support of the development of hydrogen filling station infrastructure relates on invitations that are focused on supporting the construction of a backbone network of fast charging stations, supplementary networks of conventional charging stations for electromobiles and CNG, LNG filling stations.

More info: http://www.opd.cz/

The Ministry filed a complaint to the ÚOHS, contradicts the alleged doubts in the toll tender

Odbor komunikace — Wed, 23 May 2018 13:50:26 GMT

"The law does not prohibit the use of flash drives for large documentation of 95,000 documents. In a similar competition in Germany, a rewritable medium is used and no one is contradicting. The antitrust office says there are differences on data carriers with anonymized documents compared to flash drives with non-anonymized data. However, there should not be a comparison of only these two data carriers, which will logically differ, but separately a group of anonymized flash drives and, separately the second group of non-anonymized ones. It has to be added that Kapsch wanted us to black the data in the documentation, and then affronted the difference of the disks,” said Minister of Transport Dan Ťok.

The ÚOHS did not address the nature and character of the changes due to anonymization, according to the Ministry, the Office would find that it was not a substantive change, but the lack of a type of deletion of the title of the document which could not affect the tenders submitted. The Office merely stated briefly that the mere fact that the disks were not identical was capable of influencing the selection of the most appropriate tender, which the ministry considers to be a totally wrong legal conclusion.

"The Antimonopoly Office did not allow us to comment on comparing the data carriers at all, because they did not provide the results in the background papers for the decision. We could not even ask questions to hired expert. We also see procedural failure in the fact that the supervising authority itself has not been able to track for three months where the discs are and who has access to them. Therewithal they do not want to return the data carriers, which we have already contradicted in court, "adds Ťok.

At the same time, the ÚOHS, according to the ministry, mistakenly states in its decision that the contracting submitter has not set a range of charges from 2020 and also mistakenly states that it merely "expects" the extension of the toll by 900-kilometre on Class I roads.

"The extension of tolls on Class I roads is firmly provided in the tender dossier; on the contrary, objectively, as in the previous tolling tender in 2006, the number of all newly built motorways on which the toll will be collected cannot be accurately determined per kilometre. Therefore, it is a predicted estimate of the toll charged sections. However, we have already solved this with tenderers in their questions about the tender dossier. But this fact the antitrust authority did not take into account when deciding, "says the minister of transport.

At the same time, the Ministry objected to the bias of the chairman of the supervisory authority for his misleading and truth-inaccurate media statement, commenting on the ineffective first-instance decision of the Office; the Ministry does so for the purpose of possible review by the administrative courts.

The Ministry of Transport is already preparing for the Government an analysis of other alternative solutions which will ensure the continuation of toll collection after 2019 in the event of a definitive cancellation of the tender. The aim is to ensure the collection of tolls, which annually adds 10 billion crowns, at a lower cost than they have been so far.

For the inhabitants of Frýdek-Místek the construction of a bypass has begun

Odbor komunikace — Tue, 22 May 2018 12:01:48 GMT

In the spring of this year, three-quarters of voters did not believe in a local newspaper poll that the bypass would actually begin to build. "Building is important in terms of transport, we have successfully completed the competition and made it clear that we want to help people in the region. The state has fulfilled the word when it started to redevelop the ecological damp that is related to the bypass, "said minister of transport Dan Ťok.

At present, both the 2.3 km long D48 connection and the 4.2 km long first step of the bypass are under construction. They should be completed in April 2022. "The construction of the Frýdek-Místek capacitive bypass and the related connection of the D56 motorway will divert all transit traffic from the city to the bypass roads, which will significantly increase the safety and fluency of the road traffic. The key is the start of the second step of the bypass, where currently, unfortunately, the building permit is contradicted by one of civic association. Nevertheless, we would like to start this second step even this year, "introduced the construction Jan Kroupa, CEO of the ŘSD.

Local people have been talking about the bypass for over two decades, and they also organized demonstrations for initiation. The Frýdek-Místek passage is a noise heavy burden on the apartment buildings and is a source of frequent traffic accidents.

The D56 construction in Frýdek-Místek, connection to D48 is the completion of the western bypass of Frýdek-Místek in view of the D56 road and the continuation of the D48 Frýdek-Místek bypass construction. The construction of the bypass, together with the D56 motorway, will significantly improve the environment for the citizens of the city, speeding up transport.

The D48 motorway forms an important traffic artery in the West-East direction within the Moravian-Silesian Region. The communication connects the southern part of the Moravian-Silesian Region with Central Moravia and with Poland.

The D56 motorway forms an important traffic artery in the North-South direction within the Moravian-Silesian Region. It connects Ostrava with an attractive recreational site around the Šance water reservoir in the Moravian-Silesian Beskydy Mountains and with the Beskydy Mountains in general. It allows connection of the Ostrava region and the Slovak Republic through the border crossings Horní Bečva - Makov or Bílá - Klokočov.

The buildings are designed to be co-financed under the Operational Program Transport 2014-2020 from the Cohesion Fund and from the European Regional Development Fund. They managed to compete them for a quarter less than originally assumed by ŘSD: instead of CZK 2,896 billion, they would cost only CZK 2.169 billion (excluding VAT).

Currently, the department of transport builds 118 km of motorways and 75 km of 1st class roads in the Czech Republic. A total of 197 km of road constructions.

German Railways will lead the Krušné hory tunnel project of the future route Prague-Dresden

Odbor komunikace — Thu, 17 May 2018 08:29:35 GMT

"We are getting from political declaration to technical questions and designing. We have agreed that a 26-kilometre cross-border tunnel will be designed and operated according to German regulations, which will be regulated in an interstate agreement. For this purpose, a joint project team will be established at Deutsche Bahn Netz level and Railway Infrastructure Administration, "says Minister of Transport Dan Ťok.

Between the Czech Republic and Germany there is an increase in freight transport by rail as well as motorway, therefore the high-speed railway is a major priority for Saxon minister of transport, Martin Dulig. At the same time, he wanted to make sure that, as on the German side also in the Czech Republic, intensive preparations are being made and funding of the cross-border railway is ensured.

A feasibility study is under way which will assess the economic efficiency of the project by the second half of 2019 and will choose the resulting option of the technical solution for further project preparation. "By the end of 2018, the Railway Administrators will prepare a joint agreement governing the further development of the cross-border section and will also quantify the resources needed for preparation in 2019 and 2020," adds Minister Ťok.

The Czech Rail Infrastructure Manager, together with the Saxon Ministry of Economy, Labour and Transport, are cooperating on a new study co-financed by the Czech Republic - Free State of Saxony 2014-2020 Cooperation Program, which deals with specific geological issues in the future tunnel and transport relationship.

The new high-speed railway to Dresden, belonging to the priority connections, will shorten the travelling time between Prague and Dresden to one hour and simultaneously will take away part of the traffic from the overloaded conventional route in the Labe Valley. The construction of a new route from Prague to Dresden could start around 2030. Estimates of the cost of the entire route are around five billion Euros.

The tender for the construction of 32 km of the D4 motorway through PPP starts

Odbor komunikace — Mon, 14 May 2018 08:33:57 GMT

"Within three to six years, European funds for the construction of motorways will be significantly reduced. Therefore, we need to prepare for other funding models such as PPP. In the future we would like to build in this way in locations where we have a compact motorway section with a length of at least 30 km and get a valid planning permit. The D35 or D6 are among the candidates,“ says the transport minister Dan Ťok.

Applicants can file their applications until July 2, 2018. Then they will be evaluated and short-listed, i.e. reduced to four applicants based on the number of similar PPP projects they have completed. Four joint ventures with most PPP reference projects will be invited to competition dialogues and further negotiations with the contracting authority.

The Ministry of Transport assumes that about CZK 25 billion will be paid to the winner for the construction and operation of the motorway. Based on world-wide practices, the tender value was set as the total of nominal availability payments for the entire contract term. The final annual availability payment will be defined in a public tender. "The winning bidder will not only construct the motorway, but also monitor the work quality and ensure motorway operation and maintenance, because it must hand over the motorway to the state in a top shape," minister Ťok adds.

The government approved the minister's plan to build the remaining part of the D4 through PPP in January 2016 In the next year, the Ministry of Transport signed a contract with White&Case, Česká spořitelna and Obermeyer Helika that will help the state with preparing the project and selecting the concessionaire. Contrary to the expected project price of CZK 79 million, the state saved more than CZK 50 million thanks to the public tender for PPP consultancy services. The whole remaining section of the D4 already has legally effective planning permits and a new EIA statement is pending. Land purchases along the entire length of the remaining route continue as well.

Using the mobile phone while driving is the cause of every 14th case of damage covered by the compulsory insurance

Odbor komunikace — Wed, 02 May 2018 13:41:28 GMT

Paying not enough attention to driving is the most frequent cause of accidents (19.61%)*
This is the third most common offence of Czech drivers (after speeding and failure to wear the seat belt) **
The campaign of the Czech association of insurance companies, starting in the middle of May, shall change this behaviour of Czech drivers.
The traffic police of the Czech police directorate and BESIP of the Ministry of Transport of the CR are the project partners

Not only has the number of traffic accidents and their consequences, resulting from lack of attention to driving, been growing over the last years (only in 2017 it was 65 people who died on Czech roads as a result of little attention paid to driving), but also the behaviour of drivers has been greatly transformed. "Every day we will see drivers holding their mobile phone while driving, having a phone call or writing a message, which means they are not concentrating on the traffic situation," comments colonel Tomáš Lerch, the director of the traffic police service of the Czech Police Presidium. But when considering safety, the driver is influenced in the same way as is he/she had 0.8 promile of alcohol in his/her blood if having a phone call while driving.

"When writing a short text message, the driver will loose concentration within a few seconds. During that time and if going 50 km/h, he/she will have moved by 70 m, i.e. the distance of a football field. Whoever starts chatting while driving poses an extreme risk," adds Tomáš Neřold who is authorised with the management of a separate BESIP department of the Ministry of Transport of the Czech Republic.

"Modern insurance companies shall care about prevention. We believe it is important that they help their clients ensure that as little damage as possible is caused, because the best damage is the one which has never been caused," says the executive director of the Czech association of insurance companies Jan Matoušek. Every year, drivers on Czech roads cause up to 10 000 cases of damage covered by the compulsory insurance, the cause of which is their use of the mobile phone. The damage amounts to CZK 550 million.

The communication campaign of the Czech association of insurance companies mostly addresses emotions. It shows children gravely affected by the possible injury or death of their parents. The behaviour of drivers does not mitigate the risk they are exposed to, but the risk their family and close friends are exposed to.

"Even when an accident has already happened, one can better cope with damage cause to him/her. It is much more difficult to cope with hurting someone we care about. And this is exactly what we want to want to use,“ says Jan Matoušek about the campaign motives.

The campaign is funded from the Damage Prevention Fund where insurance companies pay 3% of their compulsory insurance premiums received under the applicable act*** and will cost almost CZK 40 million. Radio spots and an online campaign support two TV spots.

The Ministry will provide another CZK 100 million for the support of alternative fuel infrastructure

Odbor komunikace — Fri, 27 Apr 2018 06:54:15 GMT

The Ministry of Transport announces the call on April 27. The deadline for submitting applications will be September 17, 2018. Applicants from these industries can apply for the subsidy: distribution of gaseous fuels through networks, gas trading or fuel retail in specialised outlets and applicants who submit a project for the construction of CNG filling stations on the territory of the Czech Republic. The scope of the project depends on applicant's considerations. In this call, the maximum rate of support of eligible expenditure may be up to 60%. The subsidy applications will be evaluated particularly in terms of economic efficiency, readiness and project relevance.

"We would like to support the construction of at least five LNG filling stations, so that at least long-distance trucks can pass through the Czech Republic. These publicly accessible filling stations will be also used for domestic freight and/or buses", says the transport minister Dan Ťok.

The National Clean Mobility Action Plan, approved by the government in November 2015, envisages 5 LNG filling stations in 2025. The objective should be achieved earlier thanks to the contribution from the operational programme.

Besides the natural gas filling stations (CNG and LNG), the Ministry of Transport also wants to support the construction of hydrogen filling stations. The call for this domain will be announced still during the spring of 2018. In total, the Ministry of Transport allocated CZK 1.2 billion for this subsidy programme within the Operational Programme Transportation for the support of alternative fuels infrastructure.

More detailed information on the terms of the support can be found in the detailed documentation of the call published on the website of the control body for the Operational Programme Transportation: http://web.opd.cz/vyzva-38

This call for the support of the development of the LNG filling stations infrastructure follows some already open calls focused on the support of a backbone network of fast recharging stations and an additional networks of conventional recharging stations for electric cars and CNG filling stations.

Read more here: http://www.opd.cz/

The section speed control system is again watching reckless speeding drivers on the D1 motorway

Odbor komunikace — Tue, 24 Apr 2018 07:09:32 GMT

"The majority of drivers do not take any risks and they keep the permitted speed of 80 km/h when safely passing through the motorway construction site. But we must, together with the police and competent municipalities that deal with the traffic offences, target and calm down these few speeding drivers who cause tragic accidents and traffic complications," says Dan Ťok, the minister of transport.

Speed measurements started on a D1 section between Velké Meziříčí (EXIT 146) and Lhotka (EXIT 153). More sections will receive the automatic detection camera system this year, e.g. between Ostředek (EXIT 34) and Šternov (EXIT 41) plus a six-km section between Hořice (EXIT 75) and Koberovice (EXIT 81). Speed measurements will also start between Jihlava (EXIT 112) and Velký Beranov (EXIT 119) depending on when the city of Jihlava purchases the detection cameras.

"Accidents that happen in the narrow sections of construction sites are mostly caused by drivers who do not manage their speed well, crash into the temporary crash barriers and block traffic in the section even for several hours. The section speed measurement system has proven well during the last two years, which is why we will use it again this year," says Tomáš Lerch, the traffic police director.

The section measurement system brought smoother and safer traffic on the modernised D1 motorway already last year. In the section Psáře – Soutice only 1.2% of drivers were speeding last year. Due to the high traffic intensity, the police recorded almost 50 000 offences.

Collaborating with the Road and Motorways Directorate (ŘSD), BESIP prepared a series of training videos how to correctly drive through the sections with restrictions. You can watch all these videos on facebook of the Ministry of Transport or on the YouTube channel of BESIP.

Building works on the modernisation of the D1 motorway between Prague and Brno are currently under way on five sections simultaneously. Traffic is guided through four lanes, two in each direction, on all these construction sites. You can find current information on where more modernisation works on the D1 will start at www.novaD1.cz. To see the list of major repairs and restrictions, check www.dopravniinfo.cz or call the ŘSD free hotline 800 280 281. The current construction sites can be found at www.mdcr.cz/mapa.

A motorway will connect the Czech Republic with Austria within 7 years, construction is starting

Odbor komunikace — Tue, 17 Apr 2018 09:36:37 GMT

"All D3 sections from Tábor up to České Budějovice are completed or under construction and further sections which constitute the České Budějovice bypass are in an advanced stage of progress, so I believe we can start still this year or by the beginning of next year," said the transport minister Dan Ťok at the meeting.

The planning and building proceedings should start for the remaining sections towards the state border soon and drivers should be able to start using the South-Bohemian D3 motorway no later than in 2025. The connecting Austrian section – the S10 motorway – should be completed one year earlier.

Both delegations informed each other about the development of the railway connection between the two countries as well, particularly the corridor between Prague, České Budějovice and Linz where the introduction of two-hour regular intervals, as it is now planned, will bring more connection options in Linz towards Salzburg – Zürich. There are direct long-distance trains operating between Prague and Linz already now, with a travel time of four hours.

CzechToll and SkyToll shall be the new toll system operator from 2020

Odbor komunikace — Wed, 11 Apr 2018 06:49:26 GMT

Following the recommendation of the bid evaluation commission, the Ministry of Transport chose the CzechToll and SkyToll consortium also based on the conclusions of the project manager who evaluated the preliminary offer and recommended it as the best one, error-free and capable of operating the toll system. CzechToll and SkyToll also provided all information and inputs needed before the contract can be signed, in accordance with the public procurement law. Under this law, nothing was preventing us from announcing the tender winner", says Dan Ťok, the transport minister.

The consortium of these companies wins with the price CZK 10.75 billion excluding VAT and should operate the toll system from 2020 for another ten years. The expected value of the supply and the ten-year operation of the electronic toll system, including an extension of the network subject to toll by 900 km, was budgeted in the project as CZK 29 billion, which corresponds to the rates of the existing toll system operator.

This is however not the end of the electronic toll system tender yet. I notified the government that the Office for the Protection of Competition is reviewing the tender and we are not allowed to sign any contract with the winner. At the same time, we can expect that the loosing bidders will raise objections against the selection of the best bid. We except the contract to be signed in the autumn, so that the new operator has 14 months for preparation and subsequent take-over of the electronic toll system unless the whole procurement is cancelled," minister Ťok adds.

The Ministry of Transport also notified the government about their analysis of alternative solutions to the public procurement for the electronic toll system. According to this analysis, any other option but letting this existing procurement be finished is problematic, because implementation does not start before 2021, i.e. more than 18 months after the end of the contract with the existing toll system operator.

The Ministry of Transport announced the tender for the toll system operator after 2019 in June 2017 with such parameters as required by the government. The ministry says that the preliminary offers of four qualified bidders showed that the tender terms were comprehensible and allowed the bidders to file their bids.

The Ministry of Transport wants to sign the contract with the new operator until the autumn of this year. After that, the operator will have 14 months for the take-over of the system, for testing and launching the electronic toll from January 2020. The expected toll revenue from motorways and category I roads should be around CZK 140 to 150 billion during the ten-year term.

Please note: The public procurement law does not allow informing the public about the content of preliminary bids as part of the so-called "negotiation proceedings with publishing". This means that the Ministry of Transport cannot comment on or publish any details on the participants in the tender and/or more specific information on preliminary bids until the end of the procurement.

Around 450 pieces of advertisement equipment have disappeared along motorways

Odbor komunikace — Tue, 10 Apr 2018 11:05:36 GMT

Most advertisement equipment is being removed from the D1 motorway, but also from the D2 and D5 motorways. There are significantly less billboards along the D8 motorway. "If the owners and operators themselves wanted, there would not be a single illegal billboard left around motorways now," says the transport minister Dan Ťok.

The owners were supposed to remove illegal billboards until September 2017 – they had the whole five years for this. After that, the Ministry of Transport started with the big red tape process: calls for the removal of advertisement facilities along motorways and their close proximity in accordance with the roads act. Regional Road Administration Authorities started sending calls for category I roads and their close surroundings.

"The law says that nobody can just come and simply cut off the advertisement. A number of papers need to be provided for each piece of equipment, so that its removal cannot be legally questioned or challenged as damage to a foreign thing," says the transport minister and adds that the biggest help would be if the billboard owners removed them at their cost and so fulfilled their legal obligations.

Some owners obstruct the billboard removal for instance by deliberately changing the owner or registered office of the company operating the respective billboard. During the actual disassembly they will call the police, saying that the motorways maintenance workers are destroying their property.