On 23rd September 2024, the Austrian state railway ÖBB and the Czech infrastructure manager SZ signed an agreement for a joint study on the expansion of the Linz – Budweis – Prague line for high-speed rail (HSR). The aim of the study is to analyse the line's potential for passenger rail transport and rail freight transport in a European, cross-border, and regional context, and to obtain an updated cost-benefit analysis. The first results should be available by the end of 2025. The study is based on the existing expansion programme for the Prague – Budweis section and the Austrian target network for 2040.
