Czech Railways (České dráhy), the largest domestic railway operator, is planning to implement an average ticket price increase of up to nine percent in its new timetable, set to commence in December. While this marks a significant price adjustment, it is notably milder compared to last year’s exceptional fifteen percent fare hike. The state-owned company, ČD, returned to profitability last year after three years of financial losses.

The forthcoming price increase, effective from December 10th, is not expected to exceed the rise within the Unified Tariff System, as indicated in the price bulletin for the upcoming year published by the state-owned company Cendis. The Unified Tariff System forecasts a 9.5 percent price increase.

Vanda Rajnochová, a spokesperson for the railways, explained, “We usually adjust ticket prices in the same range as the state.” More specific details about the price adjustments will be provided by České dráhy in the coming days. Last year, the company deviated from its regular practice of adjusting ticket prices based on the average inflation rate of the previous year due to an exceptionally high inflation rate that surpassed the current year’s price growth rate.

However, České dráhy is confirming that the fifty percent discount on fares for students and seniors will remain unchanged, as reported by Právo.

The Positive Financial Outlook: České dráhy Group reported a gross profit of 987 million Czech koruna for the first half of this year, a significant improvement of nearly two billion koruna compared to the previous year when the group was still incurring losses of 931 million koruna. The last time the group reported a semi-annual profit was in 2019.

The positive financial outcome is attributed to several factors, including the return of passengers to trains, stability in the energy market, and a stronger Czech koruna. The improvement is particularly noticeable in passenger transportation, which has seen a one-third increase in revenues in international passenger transport.

Michal Krapinec, the CEO, noted, “We now transport more passengers than in 2019, mainly thanks to tourists from abroad, including those from overseas.” Overall, the number of passengers has increased, with České dráhy transporting 79 million individuals in the first half of the year, representing a six percent increase compared to the previous year.

Higher ticket sales revenue contributed to the profitability of passenger transportation, with an 18 percent increase to 4.6 billion koruna compared to the previous year. Freight transportation also recorded a gross profit of 481 million koruna for the first half of the year, marking a year-on-year improvement of 300 million koruna. The subsidiary company ČD Cargo experienced increased international transport performance, particularly in Germany, where it operates in seven countries.

Article by Prague Forum