Current Affairs Will the way be cleared for the controversial Brno-Vienna expressway?

Jan Fischer and Werner Faymann (right), photo: CTK The Czech flag hung upside down outside the Austrian president’s seat in Vienna’s Hofburg Palace was possibly the only thing that went wrong during Czech Prime Minister Jan Fischer’s visit to the Austrian capital on Monday. Czech-Austrian relations, strained by issues such as the Temelín nuclear power plant, have appeared to be on the mend, especially since Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann agreed to look for ways to overcome the conflicting views both countries have on nuclear power.

The Austrian head of government also said that his cabinet expected to go ahead with another major Czech-Austrian project – an expressway that should connect Vienna with the South Moravian city of Brno. Chancellor Faymann said that the Austrian part of the road leading up to the Czech border should be finished by 2013.

But it’s certain that by that time, there will be no link on the Czech side as the construction of the R-52 has been delayed over several lawsuits filed by environmental organizations. Martin Fadrný is a lawyer with the Environmental Law Service, an NGO representing several communities in the dispute.

Martin Fadrný “From our perspective, the most important problem is that the project was never assessed according to the standards of both Czech and European law. The most significant implication of this is the fact that no alternatives were ever taken into consideration. But in our opinion, an alternative exists – a connection through Břeclav which would use the existing D2 highway. It would be much cheaper in terms of both Czech and EU public finances, and it’s also more environmentally friendly.”

Environmentalists argue that instead of passing by Mikulov and the protected nature reserve of the Palava hills, it would make much more sense to use the existing D2 motorway as far as the town of Břeclav on the very south-eastern tip of the country, and link the two roads there. Martin Fadrný also believes that the state of construction of the road in Austria still allows for the cheaper, and less harmful, option.

“According to my information, the road on the Austrian side ends at a point at which it can be connected to both alternatives – the road to Mikulov and the road to Břeclav. I think that the most reasonable thing the Czech side can now do is to carry out the environmental assessment and the assessment of alternatives, as required by the law, and then reach an agreement with the Austrians on the route.”

Due to a breach of EU law during the assessment process, the European Commission withdrew its financial backing for the project, which is now the sole responsibility of the Czech state. Mr Fischer promised his Austrian counterpart that he would try to earmark funds for the R-52 in the next budget. But that seems ever less likely given the prospects of a record deficit of the Czech budget both this and next year. Even if the Czech Supreme Administrative court rules in favour of the Mikulov option, the complications are such that the Czech part of the controversial new road may remain on paper for many years to come.