The Southern Moravia Region has decided in favor of shifting Brno’s main train station south to the current “dolni” cargo station. Uncertainty over the future of the station has blocked development of an enormous swath of land for over two decades now. The region’s position on the matter was backed up at a recent press conference by the presence of the city’s mayor Petr Vokřal who said he hoped there would be no further trouble from groups trying to block the modernization of the city’s rail network. This, of course, is simply wishful thinking, but transport experts have long warned that high speed rail connecting Brno to the rest of Europe will never arrive so long as the main train station is not replaced in a better location.
A final decision on the matter could also clear the way for construction of a quasi-metro system, the so-called “Diametral”. The idea is to use place existing track running north from the main station underground and create several stations long the line, using standard train engines and wagons.
