Experts today presented two variants of the station in Brno

Source
Filip Vrána

Publisher
ČTK
07.02.2014 19:10

Brno - Experts in Brno today presented the expected study that aims to address the future location of the Brno railway station. Two variants are on the table, and their feasibility will be compared by another study, which will also compare costs. The results will be known this autumn. Today's conclusions revealed that the disadvantage of the central station variant, supported by activists, is a significantly longer preparation time compared to the variant in a displaced position supported by the city hall, approximately by eight years. The study was processed by IKP Consulting Engineers. The order was placed by the Railway Administration (SŽDC).
    Experts today described the advantages and disadvantages of both variants in Brno, which they revised to make them comparable. They did not specify the costs of acquiring them.
    The Brno city hall has long supported the station in the displaced position by the Svratka River. Experts addressed several shortcomings of the original proposal, according to which passenger and freight transport were to be routed along a common path. Freight trains are supposed to pass through the middle of the station. Experts had to solve the inadequate capacity along the route to Přerov. They proposed, for example, the inclusion of an additional track from Přerov or adjustments to the Brno-Židenice station. "In terms of impacts on the surroundings, we did not cause any revolution," said Michal Babič, the technical director of IKP Consulting Engineers.
    The second variant, the station below Petrov, is advocated by the civic coalition Station in the Center. The project is conditioned by the construction of a system of three tunnels in complicated geological conditions: beneath the historical core and Yellow Hill, beneath Kohoutovice, and beneath the hill near the district of Žebětín. The line is also supposed to run under Svratka, and it was supposed to run under Zelný trh, which the experts disapproved of.
    According to the study published today, the originally proposed variant is too minimalist. It assumes that trains will have stops even underground. The original design includes four tracks. However, according to the experts, this corresponds to smaller towns, such as Jihlava. "The underground station has the fundamental property that it is unmodifiable," said Babič. He stated that problems could arise in the future if it turns out that the solution fully does not comply. "It would be worthwhile for our descendants to have a bit of generosity," Babič remarked. He recalled that railway transport has been growing in recent years. "The city of Brno and its station will be a super-strategic hub, which must correspond to the track infrastructure," he stated. Therefore, the company proposed expanding the underground part of the station to a six-track one and partially shifting the station about 200 meters south.
    From the information presented today in Brno, it follows that the disadvantage of the variant advocated by activists is time. According to Babič, it will be necessary to connect Brno to high-speed lines by 2030. "A huge amount of work lies ahead in this variant. It could happen that Brno becomes a brake on the entire development of rapid connections. That would be a great tragedy," he stated.
    Brno city councilors did not accept the proposal for a referendum on the station's location in January. The Green Party aimed to initiate a public vote. Deputy Mayor Robert Kotzian (ODS) reiterated today that the city will advocate for the variant chosen by the state and which will also be funded by it. According to the head of the Brno Greens, Martin Ander, the current study clearly demonstrated that the project of the station in the center is realistic. "The myth that the station in the center cannot be modernized has finally fallen, and all technical problems are solvable," Ander stated.

Experts today presented two variants of the station in Brno

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