PUBLIC transport authority Prague Integrated Transport (PID) has unveiled a plan for a total of six extensions to the city’s light rail network, all of which it aims to have in service by 2028. PID says that although Prague’s network is one of the densest and busiest in the world, there are still areas in the city that remain unserved and sections which have reached capacity.
The new light rail lines will be constructed towards Dvorecký Most, Jarov, Strahov, Malešice and Nové Dvory, as well as in the city centre at Wenceslas Square. The first extension, the 361m-long Dvorecký Bridge across the Vltava River, is due to open in March 2026. The new link will lead to significant alternations to the public transport network south of the city centre, including light rail lines 20 and 21.
In spring 2027, the Koruna 710m ($US 34.2m) extension of Line 5 from Olšanská to Habrová and a new terminus at Jarov is expected to open. The 2km line with four new stops passes through a former freight yard and services will be operated with bidirectional LRVs as there will be no reversing loop.
Two new light rail lines, 28 and 29, will be created when a new 1.3km extension with two new stops opens at the end of 2027. The line will link Malovanka Street with the city’s Strahov stadium. The Koruna 1.1bn project has been largely funded by European Union (EU) grants.
The longest extension, costing Koruna 1.5bn, will be built in the residential area of Malešice, where 2.2km of new track will run along Počernická Street. Lines 15 and 16 are expected to start running to the new terminus in spring 2028. At the same time, a 2km extension to Line 17 is due to open on the right bank of the Vlatava River in the southern suburbs of Nové Dvorý and Libuš. At the latter stop there will be an interchange with the city’s future metro Line D, currently under construction between Náměstí Míru and Depo Písnice and due to open in 2031.
Wenceslas Square
Light rail services will return to Wenceslas Square in 2028, after an absence of nearly 50 years following a three-year project to build a new section of line in Vodičková, Jindrišská and U Divadla streets, which will connect with the existing network at Vinohradská Street.
“Prague is entering a new stage in the development of urban transport,” says Zdeněk Hřib, deputy mayor for transport. “The long-term goal is to create a complete loop around the city that will avoid the need to travel through the centre. Along with the new lines, we are also purchasing new LRVs.”
