Repairs of the station and viaduct in Brno will be completed on schedule by the construction workers

Brno - The repairs of Brno's train station and the Prague viaduct, associated with extensive service interruptions, will be completed as planned, that is, by September 10. During a control day, Pavel Šprdlík, the operational deputy from the regional directorate of the Railway Transport Administration (SŽDC), told journalists. The fourth platform will be completed by the end of August.

"The bridge is finished and the insulation is also complete. All that remains is to lay the track superstructure and weld the rails. Four traction masts will be built for each track, traction power lines will be installed, and signals will be set up," Šprdlík stated regarding the work on the viaduct.

The summer service interruption affected tens of thousands of passengers. Due to the partial closure of this key hub, some connections were stopping in Židenice and Královo Pole, or at the Brno-Dolní nádraží station near Zvonařka. The reconstruction of the platform will cost a total of 68 million crowns, the repair of the bridge over Křenová Street will cost 55 million, the replacement of the tracks will cost 35 million, and the adjustment of the facilities at Brno's Dolní nádraží will require 12 million crowns.

However, in the coming years, more extensive repairs are planned for 2.5 billion crowns. "The capacity of the station is already completely exhausted during peak times. The planned reconstructions in the coming years must ensure the smooth operation until a new station is built," said SŽDC spokeswoman Kateřina Šubová.

In addition to increasing capacity, the station will undergo a complete overhaul of the signaling equipment. Repairs will begin in spring 2018 with preparatory work. "At Dolní nádraží, alternative passenger spaces will gradually be built, because the service interruption will not last three months, but a year and a half. The largest work will await us in 2019. However, it will not be the case that trains will not arrive at the main station at all. They will come to stub tracks either from the southern side or from the northern side," Šprdlík stated.

There has been talk of building a new train station in Brno for a long time. Investment in the old one does not mean that the construction is off the table. "The money that has been invested and will be invested in the repair of this station is necessary for us to be able to travel culturally. Moreover, this is only a small fraction of what will be needed to relocate the entire station. In such a case, we are talking about a level of 20 billion. Money for the relocation has been, is, and I believe will continue to be. The station needs to be relocated. If it does not acquire the necessary parameters, there is a risk that Brno will be left off the railway map of Europe," said Minister of Transport Dan Ťok (for ANO).

A long-standing subject of dispute in Brno remains where the new train station will be, either by the river or under Petrov. "As a state, we have decided to prepare a study to help the people of Brno make a decision. Unfortunately, the location of the Brno station has become a crucial political issue. This is wrong. It must be a professional topic, which is decided in a professional manner and construction begins," Ťok said.