Audit No 25/05 – Funds allocated for the implementation of the European Train Control System
The European Train Control System (hereinafter also ‘ETCS’) represents a significant change for the railways in the Czech Republic. The Plan for the Modernisation of the Czech Railway Signalling System (hereinafter also ‘the Plan’), approved by the Government, aims to introduce ETCS across the entire state-owned railway network – that is, 9,349 km of track – by the end of 2050.
Within the total length of the lines, the Plan specifies the implementation of ETCS on approximately 5,000 km by the end of 2033. In addition to the timetable for implementing ETCS on individual sections of track and the date for the introduction of exclusive operation under its supervision, the Plan also sets out the estimated costs of introducing ETCS. The total cost, as set out in the Plan, amounts to CZK 48.8 billion (this includes costs already incurred at the time of the Plan’s publication).
The implementation of ETCS was intended to improve safety, reliability and capacity, and to speed up rail operations. These benefits have been verified on sections of track operated under so-called ‘exclusive operation’, i.e. a regime in which no rolling stock not fitted with ETCS is permitted to run on the line in question. At the time the audit was completed, exclusive operation had been introduced on approximately 622 km of track in the Czech Republic (this figure does not include the Prague–Kralupy nad Vltavou section). Fitting these lines with ETCS technology cost CZK 1.95 billion.
From the perspective of the Trans-European Transport Networks (TEN-T), interoperability is also a key element of ETCS implementation on the Czech railway network. In terms of the Czech railway network, the TEN-T is divided into core and comprehensive networks. The current priority in terms of interoperability is to equip the main network by the end of 2030. According to the latest railway statement, this involves 1,524 km of unique lines.
The audit also examined, amongst other things, a sample of projects across a combined total of 16 line sections.
