Správa železnic (Czech Republic) and ÖBB-Infrastruktur (Austria) have signed an agreement on joint work to assess the potential for developing cross-border traffic between Prague, České Budějovice and Linz as a high-capacity corridor. The study will focus on analysing the passenger and freight transport market at the regional, European and international levels.
The first results of this study are expected at the end of 2025. The development of the route is linked to the current modernisation programme for the Prague – České Budějovice section in the Czech Republic and the Austrian ÖBB development target programme until 2040.
The joint work of the parties will enable the České Budějovice – Linz section to provide the Czech Republic with convenient access not only to Austria, but also to the southern and western regions of Europe. This would also be an addition to the busy border crossing on the Czech-German border Děčín-Bad Schandau. As for the Austrian part of the cross-border corridor, the modernization of the 61 km-long Linz-Summerau line is only planned after 2040, as a previous analysis did not reveal sufficient investment potential.