<h1>Research of the Union: Most Passengers Want a Station in the Center of Brno</h1>

Brno - Almost 78 percent of people who commute to Brno by train prefer the new main station to be located under Petrov, that is, close to the current location. Ten percent would prefer to move the station to a location by the river - to the area of today's lower station. The rest do not care. This comes from a survey conducted independently by the Association of Public Transport Passengers (SCVD) on trains. The results of the survey were published by the association in a press release. The survey does not clarify to what extent the respondents were informed about the advantages and disadvantages of the station at one location or another.

The South Moravian Region supported the relocation of the main station to the river in January, and this week the city council of the Brno-střed district expressed support for the same variant. Brno will comment at the end of February, as it is also having a public opinion survey conducted among the city's residents. The decision of the region and the city is merely a recommendation to the government, which will ultimately decide on the location of the new station. According to Minister of Transport Dan Ťok (ANO), the solution for the reconstruction of the Brno railway junction is leaning towards relocating the station to the area of today's lower freight station. After today's meeting with the management of the South Moravian Region and the Mayor of Brno, Petr Vokřál (ANO), he also said that he hopes that after the decision, dissatisfied groups will no longer block the modernization of the junction.

The Association of Public Transport Passengers (SCVD) is an organization founded in 2010 and is a member of the European Passenger Federation. Its effort is to defend passengers' rights to quality, reliable, and safe public transport, and it expresses opinions on a number of technical, primarily railway topics.

The SCVD survey took place between February 9 and 15 through personal interviews on 36 trains traveling to or from Brno. Interviewers approached 644 people over the age of 15. "We surveyed passengers on all lines heading to Brno. We obtained a sufficiently representative sample," stated the president of the association, Miroslav Vyka.

The representatives of the South Moravian Region did not have a similar survey available during the January voting. They decided based on a feasibility study commissioned by the Railway Infrastructure Administration. The study cites the advantages of relocation as the possibility of building earlier and using European funds, essentially on a greenfield site without impacting current transport. The risk is that the urban transport infrastructure necessary to get people to the station may not be completed in time. At the same time, most commuters will have a longer journey from the station to their destination, and the new station will serve fewer public transport lines than the current station.

The interviewers of the SCVD survey asked five questions - where each person travels from to Brno, how often, how they continue from the station, which option for the new station is more advantageous for them, and in which district they reside. The questioning also revealed that at least four times a week, 51 percent of passengers travel to Brno, with another 27 percent traveling at least once a week.

"It is striking that the Ministry of Transport, the Railway Infrastructure Administration, and politicians in the South Moravian Region have been addressing the future of the railway junction in Brno very intensively for more than 15 years, and until now, no one has asked passengers for their opinion on it," said Miloslav Zítka, a member of the presidium of the Association of Public Transport Passengers.

The South Moravian Region inquired of mayors, while the city commissioned a public opinion survey among the residents of Brno. The results were received today, and they plan to present these results on Monday.

Residents of Brno also voted on the location of the station in two referendums in 2004 and 2016. In both cases, a significant majority opposed relocating the station; however, turnout did not reach 35 percent, which is necessary for the result to be binding.

In recent weeks, two interest groups have conducted surveys. Almost all members of the Association of Brno Architects and Builders supported the relocation of the station, as did members of the Brno Regional Economic Chamber. Given the current positions of Brno politicians, it is likely that the Brno council will recommend to the Ministry of Transport to relocate the station.

The construction of the station is expected to take about six years. The cost is projected to be between 42 and 45 billion crowns by the river, and between 42 and 56 billion crowns under Petrov.