ČD will continue to operate express train services on line R27 between Olomouc and Ostrava via Krnov, while Arriva Vlaky has been awarded the contract for express train services on line R14 linking Pardubice, Liberec and Ústí nad Labem. The two-year ČD contract is worth Koruna 232m ($US 10m).
Arriva Vlaky was awarded the contract for Line R14 as its bid of Koruna 176m for the seven-year contract was Koruna 302m lower than the offer by ČD. Moreover, Arriva is guaranteed to operate the train services using modern trains and has sufficient staff available to take over operation of the route from the timetable change in December.
Ticket integration
Following a pilot project, which is still underway, the sale of tickets for all Czech train services running under PSO contracts will be integrated from the start of the new timetable in December so that passengers can purchase one ticket for a journey using multiple operators. A website called www.oneticket.cz, which is accessible in Czech and English, has been set up and all PSO operators will be obliged to participate.
