Prague Airport Rail Link Wins CZK 8.28 B Contract, Accelerating Fast-Track Access for Business Travellers

Czech infrastructure manager Správa železnic (SŽ) has awarded a CZK 8.28 billion (USD 400 million) design-and-build contract for the 15-kilometre Ruzyně–Kladno section of the future Prague Airport rail link. Announced late on 9 April by the International Railway Journal, the deal covers track doubling, electrification to 145 km/h and comprehensive station upgrades, forming the longest single segment of the seven-part Airport–Kladno modernisation. Construction will be delivered by a consortium of Subterra, OHLA ŽS, Elektrizace železnic and Swietelsky, whose winning bid came in below the government’s CZK 8.6 billion ceiling. Works include new stops at Hostivice-Jeneček and Pletený Újezd, replacement of Unhošť station, and preparation for the future 4-kilometre loop that will dive directly into Václav Havel Airport’s terminal. For corporate mobility managers the project is significant: when the full line opens—currently pencilled in for 2030—journey times from Prague’s Masarykovo station to the airport will fall to 25 minutes with trains every 15 minutes at peak. That reliability is expected to reduce dependence on unpredictable road traffic and lower carbon footprints for airport transfers, a metric now tracked in many companies’ ESG reporting. Funding is being structured as a mix of state budget, European Investment Bank loans, and an upcoming PPP for the expensive tunnel sections nearer the city centre. The Ministry of Transport told local media it will draw up the PPP tender dossiers by year-end, keeping the wider CZK 70 billion programme on schedule. Businesses planning new Prague hubs—or shuttling staff between headquarters and manufacturing sites in Central Bohemia—should factor the rail link into location planning. Real-estate analysts already expect higher demand for offices near Masarykovo station and along the upgraded corridor once construction moves above ground this summer.



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