The Liberec Region has been actively engaged in long-term cooperation with neighboring regions and organizes interregional bus routes. The number of passengers on these routes is growing, as the data show.

The Liberec Region has been actively and consistently engaged in cooperation with neighboring regions and organizes interregional routes. The number of passengers on these routes is growing, as the data show.

These inter-regional routes also include “long-distance” connections linking major district and regional cities. “Transportation needs are not limited by regional borders. People commute to work, for example, to Jičín, Mladá Boleslav, or Prague. Similarly, people from other regions commute to Liberec or to the mountains,” said Jan Sviták, deputy governor in charge of the transportation department.

The greatest increase was seen on routes from the Českolipsko region to Prague and from the Jizerské Mountains and Krkonoše regions via Mladá Boleslav to Prague. “Cooperation with the Central Bohemian Region during the preparation of the integration of the Mladá Boleslav and Mělník regions into the Prague Integrated Transport System played a significant role in this,” added Sviták.

The region considers cooperation on the organization of these routes to be important, particularly given the fact that, unlike other regions, due to the state of the railway infrastructure, not all transportation needs can be met by long-distance trains, which are otherwise contracted by the Ministry of Transport. Bus routes thus complement the long-distance transport system.

As part of inter-regional cooperation, connections between the Liberec and Central Bohemia Regions—and, by extension, Prague—have been strengthened. The connection from Prague to Turnov via Mladá Boleslav runs every hour. The same applies to the connection between Prague and Jablonec nad Nisou, where roughly every other bus continues as a local service to the mountain resorts of Harrachov and Rokytnice nad Jizerou. Between Prague and the Českolipsko region, additional express services run during peak hours in addition to the hourly schedule. There has also been a mutual expansion of the IDS systems’ coverage areas. “While the IDOL system covers areas as far as Mladá Boleslav, Mělník, and Jičín, the PID system extends to Turnov, Dubá, and Mimoň,” explained Otto Pospíšil, managing director of KORID LK. Close cooperation is also in place with the Ústí nad Labem Region and the Hradec Králové Region. The improved service between Nový Bor and Varnsdorf, as well as the integration of the route from Špindlerův Mlýn to Prague into the PID system, have had a positive impact on the total number of passengers.

KORID LK continuously evaluates data on passenger numbers and, in cooperation with neighboring regions, is constantly reviewing the scope of its transportation services. “Based on the data we have available, we have decided, in cooperation with the Central Bohemian Region, to deploy 15-meter buses with higher capacity to a greater extent,” added Pospíšil.

More information is available at www.iidol.cz.