Politics wants to divide trains in Brno before the new main station is completed

Brno - The distribution of railway transport in Brno among multiple stations could resolve the capacity shortage at the main station until a new one is built. This was stated today by the deputy mayor of Židenice and regional councilor Petr Kunc (TOP 09) to journalists. Disputes are ongoing regarding the new main station; it is unclear whether it will be located in the center under Petrov or in a displaced position by the river. According to Kunc, it will not be created sooner than in 20 years, but the current situation at the main station is not sustainable. Therefore, he will propose to the coalition councilors to discuss repairs at the stations in Židenice, Královo Pole, and Dolní nádraží, where some trains could be rerouted. This is already being done during the outage. The mayor's deputy responsible for transport, Matěj Hollan (Žít Brno), told ČTK that he will discuss Kunc's proposal, considering some aspects to be sensible.

The three-month outage is due to repairs of the Prague viaduct and the fourth platform at the main station. This prevents the arrival of 300 trains, or three-quarters. Informants are assisting travelers at the stations in Židenice, Královo Pole, and Dolní nádraží. “Everywhere they try to have one main station and the distribution of transport is not ideal. However, in our case, the construction of a new one, in the optimistic scenario, will take almost 20 years, so it is necessary to have a solution for that time. If we handle it well, we can repair the other stations and ensure they have good connections to public transport; it is a solution,” stated Kunc, who is a licensed engineer for civil construction.

According to him, this year's three-month outage is a test of how it could work, but improvements must be made primarily to public transport connections, and restrooms or a stop must be established at Dolní nádraží, which otherwise serves only freight transport. Next year, another longer-lasting outage is expected to begin, during which some trains from the main station will again operate to other stations. Kunc estimated the costs for repairing the stations in Židenice, Královo Pole, and Dolní nádraží at 4.5 billion crowns. The money could be drawn from the European Union, where 20 billion is allocated for the construction of a station, which, however, will not be spent by the end of the period.

Kunc will contact coalition councilors at the city hall with a proposal to create a working group to assess and elaborate on the suggestion. The city is led by a coalition of ANO, Žít Brno, KDU-ČSL, the Green Party, and TOP 09.

Hollan mentioned that he can envision, for example, long-distance trains stopping not only at the main station but also in Židenice. “I will support having both a stop in the center and in Židenice for long-distance transport. If there will be an increase in traffic in the future and trains will operate to other stations, I agree that it is necessary to have more comfortable stations where people can arrive, park, and have a more pleasant connection. We will discuss this,” added Hollan.

The topic of a new station in Brno has been discussed for decades. There have already been two referendums. Some politicians advocate for the option under Petrov, others by the river, while some say that the location is not important, but it is mainly about ensuring that a new station is built at all.