V4 Wants Cross-Border High-Speed Trains

Visegrád Group ministers met at Štrbské Pleso to discuss plans for creating a high-speed trains line connecting the four countries of the CEE region: Poland, Slovakia, Czech Republic and Hungary. The politicians signed a document expressing their wish to cooperate in this endeavor. It is a first step towards revolutionizing rail transport between the four states.

The planned train route links four European capitals: Warsaw, Budapest, Bratislava and Prague. Government officials want it to become an alternative to plane travel. High-speed trains are to enable moving between the four countries much faster than today. Currently, to get from Warsaw to Budapest, one needs to spend more than 12 hours on a train. If the project is completed, passengers will be able to get to the Hungarian capital within as little as 3 to 5 hours.

The Benefits of High-Speed Trains:

Poland’s Minister of Infrastructure Andrzej Adamczyk, Czechia’s Minister of Transport Dan Tiok, Hungary’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto and Slovakia’s Minister of Transport and Construction Arpad Ersek announced the creation of a workgroup whose task will be to draft a feasibility study for the project and assess the potential cost of the endeavor. They will also face the challenge of coordinating work in the four neighboring countries.

If the project is completed, trains will travel at a speed reaching 350 kilometers per hour. It is not yet clear how the rail link will be financed. The four ministers had a meeting with European Investment Bank representatives.

High-speed trains will be a part of a big investment plan affecting rail transport across Poland. The government announced it will spend as much as 40 billion PLN on new tracks, trains and stations and refurbishing the existing ones. Investment in the rail network plays a significant role in creating the Central Communication Port, a large airport hub planned to be created in the heart of Poland.