A multi-level crossing proposal was prepared for the Studénka railway crossing

A multi-level crossing proposal was prepared for the Studénka railway crossing
20/7/2018Press releases

The RIA prepared and submitted to the Central Commission of the Ministry of Transport for approval a proposal to replace the existing level crossing in Studénka with a multi-level crossing. They also prepared the Zoning Permit Design and submitted it to the building authority for a statement. The pre-condition for the approval of the proposal is the positive statement of the Studénka town representatives on a change of the urban development plan which would allow this construction.

A multi-level crossing proposal was prepared for the Studénka railway crossing
 
"The cancellation of the problematic crossing, construction of an underpass and a new road for trucks will finally solve the situation in a place where three people died in 2015 and many were seriously injured. The RIA has preliminarily selected eight similar places where multi-level crossings will be built during the next years, improving safety on the railway," says the minister of transport Dan Ťok.
 
The crossing in Studénka saw an extremely serious accident in July 2015, but there are seven more dangerous places where the RIA is working on a plan to rebuild the crossing and has been working on the Zoning Permit Design. The preparation and award of the building permit and contractor selection can take several years. Besides the necessary change of the urban development plan of the town of Studénka which the town representatives will also discuss at their meeting in the second half of 2018, the RIA must still acquire eight land plots that have two private owners. When acquired, the condition of the town for the approval of the urban development plan amendment will be met. After that the RIA can apply for the legally effective zoning permit with the competent building authority and start work on the civil design. If the design preparation runs smoothly and all necessary legal steps have been taken, construction could start in 2020.

 
 

The primary objective is to cancel the level crossing of the rail line with the road. A new underpass will be built instead. Its clear height was discussed with the Integrated Rescue System representatives, the road owner and administrator and the town of Studénka. The clear height of 3.7m was chosen for the underpass which will deliberately prevent trucks from passing through. A road will be reclassified after construction completion from a category III road to a "local road". Heavy trucks will be diverted outside road III/46427. The replacement route for trucks will be road II/464 and the D1 motorway. Access to the commercial zone will be provided from road II/464 via street Butovická on a new access road. The design also covers the relocation of road III/46427, placing the crossing with street R. Tomáška farther to reach the legally required distance from the crossing. The new connection with the commercial zone will take trucks away from street R. Tomáška, so restrictions will of course apply to trucks all over the town.
"Should the multi-level crossing is built in Studénka, we have to buy a lot of land and build a by-pass route for trucks. The new road for trucks will not only make railway traffic safer, but reduce the intensity of transit traffic in the town and so improve the quality of life for local residents. Having studied the project plan, my estimation of the costs is about CZK 700 million," says the RIA CEO Jiří Svoboda.
 
The construction of the multi-level crossings is not the only way to improve safety for trains and cars. Modernisation and reconstruction of existing railway crossings is another method. Cooperating the Police of the Czech Republic and the Railway Authority, the RIA selects dozens of railway crossings every year as candidates for modernisation and safety improvements. Most of them are crossings where there have been repeated accidents, or crossings equipped with the most out-of-date safety systems of warning crosses only. Since the beginning of 2018 eight crossings, that had been equipped only with warning crosses, have been equipped with a safety system. Another eleven crossings which already had red lights were upgraded and bars were added. The RIA plans to invest CZK 814 million in different methods of safety improvement on 82 level crossings in 2018. The RIA seeks to reduce the number of crossing as such. In 2017 they managed to cancel 16 crossings, most of which were field road crossings or single-purpose crossings only.
 
The RIA has also been working on the reconstruction of seven level crossings which is now in a different semi-completion stage. On route Břeclav - Přerov this applies to three crossings in Halenkovice, Rohatec, Napajedla and Žlutava where the expected construction period is in 2021 - 2022. For 2020 - 2021 the reconstruction of conventional crossings on these routes is foreseen: Česká Třebová - Praha with a level crossing in Uhersko. Another multi-level crossing is under preparation on route Přerov - Bohumín, specifically in Polanka nad Odrou, and a railway overpass will replace the conventional crossing on route Přerov - Olomouc in the city part of Olomouc-Holice.






 
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