A high-speed train connection to the Prague airport is expected to be completed by 2024. Work on the much-delayed project should get underway in three years, Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka said after meeting with transport minister Dan Ťok and the head of the national railway manager SŽDC, Pavel Surý. Costs are expected to hit CZK 23bn, CZK 3bn more than original estimates because the trains will have to run through a tunnel between the Dejvice residential neighborhood and Veleslavín in Prague 6. EU officials criticized the price increase, but Ťok argues that a cheaper surface variant would block the project for years because of strong opposition from local residents. However, if the price for a single section is considered too high, the EU could block funding, forcing the Czech state to look elsewhere for financing. Sobotka said an increase of tourists from Korea and China has driven the need to build a fast connection between the city center and the airport.
