Transport Yearbook 2004

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Transport in 2004

 

Entry of the Czech Republic into the European Union

The May 2004 entry of the Czech Republic into the European Union has principally influenced a number of economic activities, and it has rather substantially influenced the whole transport sector. The road and air transport were the most influenced areas. The performance of international airports increased year-on-year by one third in 2004, the number of passengers grew by more than 2 million whereby exceeding a 10 million limit. With Czech air carriers a more intensive growth of the passengers carried was also recorded.

Based on the results of automatic counters operated by the Road and Motorway Directorate the road transport recorded in the period of May - November 2004 the traffic performance increase by up to 33% on certain D5 motorway sections in comparison with the same period of the preceding year and up to 9% on certain D1 motorway sections, with the traffic load on certain D8 motorway sections increasing by up to 20%.

According to the Foreign and Border Service Directorate, which monitors, as from 2004, the load on particular border crossings, and the Customs Directorate General, which had monitored such data until the entry of the Czech Republic into the EU, the greatest increase of the load on border crossings by lorries has been recorded on border section with Slovakia, i.e. by 26%, and by 15% with Germany. Only in the period May - December, the increase on Slovakia border reached even 35%, and 22% on Germany border. When comparing the number of lorries on most loaded border crossings for the period May - October 2004, then an increase more than 100% has been recorded at Rozvadov crossings, 89% at Hatě crossings and at Břeclav even 121% as compared with the same period of the preceding year. No significant impact has been recorded, as a result of our entry into the EU, in the road freight transport operated by Czech carriers, nor an extraordinary growth in international transport has taken place.

Higher traffic intensity on motorways and other selected roads inherently entails a higher accident rate. If we consider the 2004 accident rate on Czech motorways in terms of accidents caused by motor vehicle drivers, then these drivers caused 4 284 accidents on motorways with 55 persons being killed at these accidents (death within 24 hours). Compared with 2003, the number of accidents is higher by 15.1% and the number of killed actually by 37.5%. In terms of an absolute value, the number of accidents was higher by 562 and the number of killed was higher by 15 persons. The share of lorry drivers in this increase amounts to 156 accidents and 13 killed persons. The lorry drivers with a trailer or a semi-trailer caused 680 accidents on motorways in 2003 with 10 persons being killed. Compared with 2003, the number of such accidents is higher by almost 13% and the number of killed persons by 150%. In terms of an absolute value, the number of such accidents was higher by 72 and the number of killed was higher by 6 persons.

Infrastructure

The 2004 transport infrastructure investments were significantly higher than in preceding years. In current prices, the year-on-year increase in investment expenditures amounted to almost 66%, and such funds generated 1.88% GDP in total (except expenditures in local roads and other urban public transport infrastructure). In 2004, by analogy with the past, the State Fund of Transport Infrastructure recorded the greatest share in investments, namely approximately 60%. Altogether, the expenditures of the State Fund of Transport Infrastructure on the construction, modernization, repairs and maintenance of the infrastructure amounted to more than 49 billion CZK.

Growth of funds invested into road infrastructure continued also in 2004, and it has reached 65%, which is substantially higher than in the preceding period. Of the total funds invested about 12% went into roads in the ownership of regions, i.e. class II and class III roads. Total funds expended on repairs and maintenance remained, more or less, at the 2003 level, but the airport infrastructure recorded an increase roughly by 25%, and also the road infrastructure recorded a modest increase, i.e. about 5%. As concerns the funds expended on railway infrastructure repairs and maintenance, a break in the time series in 2003 was brought about by the change in the cost structure.

The 1 January 2003 saw the transformation of the Czech railways, state organisation, to the Czech railways, joint stock company and to Railway Infrastructure Administration, state organisation, the latter being charged with the management of the state owned railway infrastructure. According to a contract between the Railway Infrastructure Administration and the Czech Railways, joint stock company, the Czech Railways, joint stock company, provide for the operation, modernization and development of the railway infrastructure. In 2003, compared with previous years, the cost structure has changed - the cost no more includes the depreciation of the infrastructure equipment.

The Czech Republic ranks among such EU Member States the infrastructure of which is the more dense, namely both in the railway system and road infrastructure. However, its technological backlog remains an issue reflecting in unsatisfactory parameters, traffic defects (of point, line or directional nature), including insufficient capacity or quality. It is only logical that the infrastructure maintenance and rehabilitation is being given preference over an extensive development, where only scheduled completion of important motorways and expressways is involved. The year 2004 was also a year when transport infrastructure projects had to be prepared - projects the implementation of which will be supported also from EU resources within a multi-resource financing.

In the railway transport the Railway Infrastructure Administration has ensured, inter alia, the adjustment of the lining and the levelling of 1 300 km of tracks and 549 point switches. The replacement of rails was carried out on 153 km of lines, including 79 155 sleepers. In the field of railway infrastructure modernization and development the activities are on a long term basis focused, first of all, on the preparation and implementation of investment actions with an emphasis on the modernization of transit railway corridors and on critical railway centres. In 2004 the last constructions have been completed on railway transit corridor I (Děčín - Praha - Česká Třebová - Brno - Břeclav), whereby the modernization of the whole corridor I was also completed according to scheduled extent. By the last structure completed in 2004 on the main leg of the railway transit corridor II (Břeclav-Přerov-Petrovice u Karviné) the modernization of this important transit line was finished. Intensive work was in progress in 2004 on unfinished structures in the section Přerov - Česká Třebova of the railway transit corridor III.

Within such actions the "Krasíkov" tunnels were put into service. The tunnels represent a substantial traffic shortening and acceleration. The building of other three connecting tunnels and relaying of the lines improving the passage through Moravská Sázava valley is also in progress. From the international transport point of view the section between Praha, Plzeň and Cheb is considered as a priority part of the corridor III which should ensure the connection with the European railway network. Individual structures in this section are in the phase of preliminary project and project preparation. In 2004 the passage through Děčín railway centre was continuing as well as the construction of Choceň and Bohumín railway centres.

Furthermore, a structure of the so called "New Connection" was launched as an object between the railway stations Praha Main Station, Praha-Libeň, Praha-Holešovice and Praha-Vysočany, making part of a passage through Praha railway centre. Also a project documentation to design the Brno railway centre is under preparation as well as the documentation to design the passage through Ústí nad Labem and Kolín railway centres. Also other construction projects are in progress. In order to provide for the interoperability within the whole European railway network the Railway Infrastructure Administration has prepared an ETCS (European Train Control System) pilot project on the corridor I in the Poříčany- Kolín section and the implementation of the GSM-R (Global System for Mobile Communication for Railway) pilot project in the Děčín, state border-Ústí nad Labem-Praha-Kolín section. In addition, works were in progress concerning the electrification of Kadaň - Karlovy Vary and Letohrad - Lichkov railway line.

Above and beyond the preferred maintenance and removal of traffic defects with respect to traffic safety and environmental protection the following main tasks continued in the road transport infrastructure field:

Based on such criteria the following constructions have been in progress on six motorway sections (D 1 Vyškov - Mořice, D 3 Tábor - Chotoviny, D 5 Plzeň bypass, D 11 Libice nad Cidlinou - Dobšice with Chlumec nad Cidlinou bypass as a follow up towards Hradec Králové, D 47 (Ostrava, Rudná - Bílovec).

Of important actions on class I road network the following sections were completed: I/50 Véstky - Veletiny and Uherské Hradiště bypass, I/19 Pelhřimov bypass, I/21 Brod nad Tichou bypass, R 48 Český Těšín - Žukov (construction II, I/7 Chomutov fly-over, thoroughfare road sections I/20 and I/27 in Plzeň, I/35 road section Litomyšl - Gajer and Hodkovice - Rádelský mlýn and Slavonín - Přáslavice (four lanes on R 35) and Jihlava bypass on I/38 road.

Among important constructions on class II and class II road network, which are under the management of regions, we may refer to the following constructions of significance: reconstruction of roads II/220 Karlovy Vary - Nejdek and II/222 Karlovy Vary - Dubina, II/272 Benátky, thoroughfare, II/329 Pečky, southern access road, II/310 Žamberk bypass, II/360 Čermná - Letohrad Jablonec - northern tangent (I/14), reconstruction of roads II/406 Dvorce - Telč - Třešť and II/353 Nové Veselí - Bohdalov, bypass construction at Velké Mezříčí (II/602), reconstruction of roads II/428 Staré Město - Velehrad II, III/4915 Liptál, II/374 Rájec - Blansko, II/432 Milotice thoroughfare, II/400 Miroslav thoroughfare, II/445 Vrbno pod Pradědem intersection with II/451.

Inland waterway navigation: completion of the Klecany navigation step reconstruction and České Kopisty locks in Štětí within the modernization in progress of the Elbe-Vltava waterway. Anti-flood measures were finished in Smíchov port.

Intensive construction of the terminal North 2 including the so called "finger" C was continuing at the Praha-Ruzyně airport. An important element to increase the runway capacity is the construction of the so called "rapid departures" from the take-off runway "VPD 06/24" were completed in the first half of 2005.

Transport equipment

The number of registered road motor vehicles has moderately increased in 2004 compared with the previous year, and it amounted to 168 057 vehicles, which represents 2.88%. The year-on-year growth has increased by 1.3%. In the course of 2004, 94 275 vehicles were deleted from the vehicle registration and 341 080 vehicles were newly registered. In total, 5 997 306 vehicles of all types and categories were registered in the Central Register of Vehicles as of 1 January 2005. The number of passenger cars increased during 2004 by almost 3%, which represents almost twofold increase compared with the previous year. Substantially higher growth is recorded for lorries, namely threefold compared with the 2002, and it is reaching more than 9%.

In the course of 2004 a moderate increase in the age of the vehicle fleet as a whole has taken place. The average age of all vehicles increased to 15.58 years, and 12.53 years for passenger cars compared with 12.49 years in 2003. The trailers attached to passenger cars are having a substantial share in the relatively high average age of motor vehicles, with the average age of such trailers increasing by one year during 2004, reaching average age of 18,52 years. Average age of special vehicles is reaching a value of 19.16 years also with the increase by one year, followed by agricultural tractors where the average was even above 25 years, and here again we are recording an increase compared with the previous period. Motorcycles are still remaining the oldest category with an average age above 30 years in this period. Contrary to this, the average age of lorries have decreased by almost half a year and it was 8.99 years. The freight trailers and road tractors are remaining the youngest categories even in 2004, and they are reaching an average age of 7.73 and 7.58 years respectively.

In 2004 a significant increase in the number of aircraft with take-off mass higher than 9 000 kg has taken place. According to the Civil Aviation Authority register, 63 such aircrafts were registered in the Czech Republic in the above mentioned year, which represents an increase by 13%. The number of B-737 aircraft recorded the greatest increase.

Transports

In 2004 no unexpected breakthrough in the freight and also in the passenger transport did take place in terms of the volume of passengers and goods carried. A substantial growth has been recorded in the air passenger transport only. In general, the public passenger transport showed a modest increase in transport performance, namely by almost 2%, and the number of passengers carried was more or less stagnating. The largest growth, i.e. by 24%, was recorded in passenger-kilometres for air transport performance, the number of persons carried reaching even an increase by 26% and the airport performance increasing by 29%. After three years the development trend of railway passenger transport has changed and the number of passengers carried increased by less than 4% and by 1% in terms of performance. On the contrary, the transport performance in the bus service dropped by 9% in 2004 and the number of persons carried was stagnating. Also the performance of urban public transport and inland waterway transport recorded almost no change.

As far as the goods transport performance is concerned, all transport modes apart from the air transport recorded a decline. In total, the performance declined by 2% on a year-on-year comparison and, however, the transport volume in tonnes increased by more than 2%. For the first time from 1999, the road freight performance showed a downtrend even if this decline was very moderate, namely by 1.2%, the volume of goods carried doesn't reflect this trend, while increasing by 4%. Already traditionally, by analogy with the passenger transport, the largest increase is emerging in the air transport where the transport performance and airport performance increased roughly by 10%.

Accidents

In 2004 there were 196 484 traffic accidents reported to the Police of the Czech Republic, which represents an increase by 0.3% compared with the previous year. Altogether 1 215 persons were killed due to accidents (i.e. death within 24 hours after the accident - international statistics takes account of the number of persons dead within 30 days from the time of the accident - this would correspond to 1 382 killed persons in our case); there were 5 253 persons seriously injured and 30 312 slightly injured. The material damage was estimated at 9.687 billion CZK, which is almost twofold compared with 1995. An increase as against 2003 amounted to 353 million CZK, which is 3.5%. On the contrary, the total number of killed persons declined by 7.9% (death within 24 hours, which corresponds to 4.5% of deaths within 30 days), the number of seriously injured by 7.1% and the number of slightly injured persons by 2.5%.

In the period of last 15 years the number of persons killed in 2004 is the fourth lowest while the lowest number of killed was in 1990 (1 173 persons), in 1991 (1 194 persons) and in 1998 (1 204 persons). On the contrary, the highest number of killed persons was in 1994 (1 473 persons). These figures relate to death within 24 hours.

Of the total number of accident items monitored monthly we have recorded an increase in the number of accidents for almost half of the items, and for almost 66% monitored accident items a decline in the number of killed persons has taken place. The highest absolute increase was recorded for accidents which happened on a wet carriageway surface (increase by 6 419 accidents - i.e. by 16.7%) and, further, for accidents which happened on a carriageway covered by slushy snow (increase by 3 285 accidents - i.e.by112%).

Compared with 2003, the number of accidents was lower only in the territory of the capital city of Prague - 5 991 accidents. The highest number of killed persons was in the territory of Central-Bohemian region and, on the contrary, the lowest was in the Karlovy Vary and Liberec regions. In terms of the time period in 2004, the highest number of death was in October where also the highest number of accidents was recorded involving the highest material damage.

As to the accident cause, the majority of accidents was caused by motor vehicle drivers, namely 91%, of which particularly by the lorry drivers - increase by 2026 accidents (i.e. 7.6%). To this number the bus drivers added 98 accidents (i.e. an increase by 5.5%) and the tractor drivers added 148 accidents, which represents an increase by 22.8%.

The development of road traffic accident consequences in 2004 may be assessed positively since it also confirms a relatively high year-on-year drop in the number of killed persons in the following categories: passenger car driver, cyclist, bus passenger, pedestrian, passenger car fellow-traveller and moped driver. Only for lorry driver and lorry co-driver categories we are recording the increase in the number of killed by 11 and 4 persons respectively.

In spite of this development in road traffic accident statistics, which is rather favourable for the year 2004, there are certain regularly monitored items where, for the time being, we are recording an unfavourable development.

It still remains a sad reality that in average every three minutes in 2004 the Police of the Czech Republic investigated an accident, every 18 minutes a person has been slightly injured in an accident, every 108 minutes an accident caused a serious injury and every 7.2 hour an accident involved a death of a man.

Unfortunately, not too much good rating follows for the Czech Republic from an international comparison. From the OECD statistics it results that the corresponding number of killed persons per 1 million of population is more than twofold as compared with the developed countries, for instance, the Sweden, Norway, United Kingdom and Netherlands. A higher number has been recorded in Greece, Poland and Portugal.

Environment

Despite a moderate downtrend in road transport performance the total energy consumption continues to rise. This is also documented by a continuing growth of fuel sales in 2004, notably petrol (by 9.2% on a year-to-year basis) and diesel fuel (by 12% on a year-to-year basis). The fuel consumption growth is very closely related, inter alia, to the emissions produced by transport.

The transport emission balance takes account of substances contributing to the long-term atmosphere warming, i.e. carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrogen oxide (N2O), and atmosphere pollutants to which the emission limits are applicable: carbon oxide (CO), nitrogen oxides (NOx), non-methane gaseous hydrocarbons (NM VOC), solid particles emitted particularly by diesel engines, and non-limited substances with toxic effects on human health, like lead (Pb) and sulphur dioxide (SO2). The highest growth show the greenhouse gases, CO2 (by 6.4% on a year-on-year basis), and particularly the N2O (by 16.4% on a year-on-year basis). Among the emissions where we have reached the best results in their stabilization the following are to be included: CO, CH4 and also NM VOC because new vehicles have to comply with still stricter EURO limits (already EURO IV at present). The NOx emissions from individual automobile transport are also going down but their production from lorries is growing. This growth should be slowed down or even stopped as the new diesel engines are already equipped with devices for the NOx reduction. The emissions depending on fuel quality (SO2, Pb) have been practically removed from the transport due to high quality low-sulphur and unleaded fuels available on the market. However, the PM emissions still remain the largest problem - their contents in the atmosphere are increasing by 2% on a year-on-year basis.