Czech businessmen have made an early election call for political parties to clearly state their support for the construction of a high speed rail network in the country in the run up to October elections to the lower house of parliament. They are worried that pledges might otherwise run out of steam, Radio Praha writes.

The current Czech government has taken steps to put the country back on the fast train track. It backed a blueprint earlier this year to invest around 650 billion crowns in a 660 kilometre high speed network. And plans have already been laid for a cross border high speed link between Prague and Dresden which should extend to Berlin and Hamburg. But Czech businessmen though are worried that plans could remain just that and the high speed track laid by the government might disappear in the smoke of electoral battle and its aftermath.

A motion passed by the Czech Chamber of Commerce this week called for political leaders to commit in their election campaigns to the high speed rail plans so that it would have clear traction going forward. 

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Read another article by Radio Praha on how the Czech government is planning to elevate eight bridges that span the Vltava River to open the route between Prague and Germany for both tourists and cargo boats. The overall cost of the project is estimated at 1.3 billion crowns.