Second meeting of the dialogue forum on the new Dresden–Prague line in Pirna
Deutsche Bahn plans further public meetings in the autumn prior to the regional planning procedure
The dialogue forum on the new Dresden–Prague line held its second meeting on 26 June 2019 at the invitation of Deutsche Bahn. The forum members unanimously agreed on a shared mission statement that defines the objectives and future working methods of the forum.
Representatives from the State Directorate of Saxony (Landesdirektion Sachsen) explained how the regional planning procedure works and the role it plays. They also presented the outcome of the pre-application conference on 8 May 2019. The State Directorate of Saxony is the regional planning authority responsible for the new Dresden–Prague line.
At the pre-application conference, public agencies were able to submit comments on the spatial impact assessment, which are currently being examined. Following on from this, the State Directorate of Saxony will define the scope of the spatial impact assessment and the content and scope of the documents for the regional planning procedure.
Deutsche Bahn plans to complete the documents for the regional planning procedure in the fourth quarter of 2019 and submit them to the regional planning authority.
Directly after initiating the regional planning procedure, Deutsche Bahn will invite the public to meetings at which the regional planning documents will be explained. As part of the procedure, the State Directorate will give the public the opportunity to comment on the plans.
Other topics on which the forum exchanged views included the results of the public meetings in April 2019 and the legal requirements for noise control. Fixed limits for noise emissions apply to new lines such as the Dresden–Prague project, and those limits must be upheld in subsequent operation.
In addition, Dr Böhm (Bad Schandau) and the Basistunnel nach Prag (Base Tunnel to Prague) action group explained the options they had developed to the forum participants.
The members of the forum emphasized the need for constructive cooperation to find a sustainable solution fit for the future for the new line.
The next regular meeting of the dialogue forum is slated for early 2020. In autumn 2019, Deutsche Bahn will also invite the members of the dialogue forum to an information event where the regional planning procedure documents will be presented.
On 8 April 2019, representatives from the region and Deutsche Bahn met for the first dialogue forum on the new Dresden–Prague railway line.
DB invited public officials, members of parliament, members of the business community, passenger groups, environmental associations and citizens’ initiatives to Pirna. The dialogue forum will be held alongside the planning process for the new railway line and give a voice to the interests and experiences of people in the region.
The Dresden–Prague project will create new capacity for rail transport and considerably reduce journey times for long-distance passenger trains. The forum members emphasised that the new line should offer the greatest possible benefits (e.g. it should be suitable for mixed traffic while ensuring environmental protection and noise control aspects).
The objectives, membership and future working methods of the dialogue forum were discussed and will be jointly adopted in the form of a mission statement at one of the upcoming forum meetings. The forum members emphasised that planning for the new route should follow a transparent process with open communication, treating all participants as equals.
A further central topic of the meeting was the pre-application conference scheduled for 8 May 2019 to prepare the regional planning procedure. This conference serves to agree on the content and scope of the spatial impact assessment to be prepared. The route of the new line has not yet been decided. The regional planning procedure will examine all the options currently under discussion for possible obstacles.
Following its first meeting, the dialogue forum will meet regularly and discuss the plans in detail.
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