Fast Railway Networks in Central Europe: Key Concepts and Their Possible Impact on Regional Development
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| Year of publication | 2019 |
| Type | Appeared in Conference without Proceedings |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Description | Fast railways are considered to be a sustainable kind of public transportation. They are suitable for distances, which are too long for sustainable car using, and too short for plane flights. In Western Europe, these policies are common since the 1980s. In the post-socialistic countries of Central and Eastern Europe, the situation is slightly different. Conventional railway network was used mainly for freight transportation and kept in a state of stagnation. New connections or fundamental reconstructions were rare. Different policies have an important role in fast railways network planning and operating these days. This paper focuses on the comparison of approaches in planning and operating of fast railways in Central Europe and on the assessment of possible impacts on regional development in particular states, i.e. Austria, Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia and Hungaria. There are three different concepts in these five states. In Austria, fast railway network is considered to be a part of the Western Europe rail network, and a part of the trans-European multimodal network as well. The Czech Republic and Poland plan to build the new networks of fast railways, mostly or partially independent on the current conventional rail network, without international connections. Slovakia and Hungaria have selected the way of deep re-construction of conventional railways. Each of these concepts has a different impact on regional development. As can be seen in Western Europe, the fast-railway network building has no special influence on regional development. The fast railway terminal is able to be an impulse of development only in the case of yet-existing development potential in the locality. The assessment of possible impacts in mentioned states is based on these sources and on the comparison of their settlement structure and regional development principles. The main results are: (1) In the case of new fast railway network, the location of a terminal (station) near regional centres is important. (2) In the case of reconstruction of a conventional network, it is possible to revive the stagnating centres, but the new development probably would not be started. |
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