Pondering over railway route Prague-Munich

A new railway route between Prague and Munich, to be completed by 2020 at the latest, should shorten the travel time from the current six hours to a half of that. While the Czech side sees it as a priority, the German federal government hasn´t included it in the list of planned transport routes yet. This was heard at a meeting of Czech and Bavarian Transport Ministry representatives, state investors, logistics companies as well as regional companies from both sides of the border. “The federal government will have compiled an economic analysis of the route within three or four weeks, it will serve as a basis for a decision whether it will be included in the German transport routes schedule. However, construction wouldn´t start before 2015,“ said Hans Peter Göttler, head of transport department at Bavarian State Ministry for Economy, Infrastructure, Transport and Technology. Regensburg and Pilsen District Commerce Chambers have been lobbying for the line with regional politicians for several months. They have prepared a joint information brochure specifying seven important transport projects between the two countries preferred by the currently forming Danube – Moldau euroregion. It is expected to receive a large portion of EU funds between 2014 – 2020. Representatives of Bavarian institutions and companies said today that cargo transport between the two countries is to increase by more than a half by 2025. They want to push through more money than before for transport construction projects to Bavaria although they know that Germany intends to economise much. Bavaria is an important partner for the Czech Republic, as it receives 80 % of all exports to Germany – the biggest importer of Czech production.