Connection Prague-Liberec-Görlitz was included by the EU parliament in the Trans-European network.

Liberec – The European Parliament has incorporated the Prague – Mladá Boleslav – Liberec – Frýdlant in Bohemia – Zgorzelec – Görlitz railway connection into the TEN-T main European rail network. This has increased the chances that the track will be modernized and electrified after decades and that the project may also draw on European subsidies. The Liberec line effectively moves to a similar level of importance as other corridors in the republic. Liberec governor Martin Půta (Mayors for the Liberec Region) commented last week on the decision.

“The inclusion of the line in the map of European corridors practically entails requirements for electrification, higher capacity, and security. It also definitively sets the latest operational date and the possibility of drawing financial resources for construction from European funds. All of this had been missing in Liberec up to now, and real steps to improve the local railway were being postponed,” added Půta. According to him, the inclusion of the route in the trans-European network is a signal to all responsible that they can fully start the project preparation.

The railway line from Liberec to Prague, like most of the tracks in the Liberec region, was built in the second half of the 19th century. Since then, it had not been substantially modernized. Talks about moderations to the Prague track have been ongoing for years, with 16 studies being produced since 1990. It was assumed in 2003 that trains would be running faster by 2010; however, other tracks in the Czech Republic always took priority. According to Půta, the railway connection between Liberec and the 87 km distant Prague “froze” at a travel speed of around 35 km/h. Moreover, passengers have to change trains, thus they prefer personal cars or buses.

According to a feasibility study, trains between Liberec and Prague should travel at speeds of up to two hundred kilometers per hour in the future, thus reducing the current travel time from 160 minutes to just under 70 minutes. The project’s costs are estimated by the Ministry of Transport at 55 billion crowns. During a visit to the region in March, Minister Martin Kupka (ODS) said that work is already underway on modernizing sections in the Central Bohemian Region, which should be completed by 2031. “As for the timelines for those other parts from Mladá Boleslav towards Liberec, I would say it’s optimistic, but at the same time realistic outlook is in the first half of the next decade,” added Kupka.