 CZECH REPUBLIC - train + bikeKey figures :
 The railway operator, Ceské Dráhy (ČD), which ranks fourth in Europe after Germany, France and Poland, carries 500 000 passengers and 250 000 tons of freight daily on 7000 trains. The network thus totals 9600 km, 3000 of which are electrified (figure for 2007) for a population of 10.2 million people and a surface area of 79 000 km˛, making it one of the world’s densest networks with those of Belgium and Germany. Train + bike, the main points :
ČD, the public railway operator has a bike-friendly policy; however, bikes are not its priority. On board trains: Bikes are accepted in all regional trains and most national trains for 20 CZK (Czech Crowns), or 0.8 € (value as of 2008), as indicated by a small bike pictogram. The ticket can be bought at any ticket window, on the Internet and even on board. Cars have been renovated for bike transport on tourist trains. At the departure and/or arrival station: Bike parking is often managed by the operator (the cities also create bike parks), who creates spaces on his land on the basis of his estimate of the demand, which is often very strong in rural areas where the modal share of bike travel may be as high as 30%. The operator has created some guarded parking facilities, at Olomouc for instance, in order to put an end to unauthorised parking. ČD owns bikes as part of a train station-based rental network, but this has not yet been as successful as the Swiss „Rent a Bike“ system (the prices range from 100 to 200 CZK a day, or 4 to 8 €). Storage areas for baggage, including bikes, exist in most railway stations. On the government side, the agency acting in the area of cyclism is the CDV or transportation research centre (Centrum dopravního výzkumu), which recently became independent along the lines of the CERTU en France . It is in charge of coordinating the nationwide bike strategy (published in January 2005). In particular, it asks local government to cooperate with ČD for local problems of parking, rental and access to train stations by cyclists. The CDV has issued recommendations approved by the ministry and published a technical guide for local government authorities, a methodological guide including examples and technical materials. The CDV encourages and informs mayors (methodology) on the one hand, and on the other hand assists associations in order to supply them with arguments. Funding: At the national level, a transportation fund enables a commission (ministry, CDV, etc.) to issue subsidies to the cities, subject to active and relevant participation (projects) by the city: the criteria include the cooperation of the players, the coherence of the network, the monitoring of local bike strategy, etc. Local associations play a major role in defining and implementing the actions. Consultation predominates. Some cities, such as Olomouc (where the modal share of bike travel is 8 to 10%) or Pardovice (15%), operate in quite an interesting fashion: the cyclists‘ association consults with the city at meetings of the transportation committee and proposes a bike plan (including in the vicinity of the railroad station). The township authorities then approve or reject the plan. Downloadthis document in pdf format Contacts : Jaroslav Martinek, CDV (Centrum dopravního výzkumu), jaroslav.martinek@cdv.cz - Radomira Pliskova, Radomira.pliskova@cdv.cz |
POLITICS