Based on traffic data gathered during the restoration of the tram route between Malostranská and Ujezd, Prague hopes to reduce congestion in the city center.
The Mala Strana neighborhood should be closed to through traffic in the future, according to Zdeněk Hřib, Deputy Mayor for Transport.
In the next three weeks, the government will assess the data in collaboration with the Prague City Transport Company, the Technical Administration of Communications, and the ICT Operator.
“There was no traffic jam in Prague following the closure of Mala Strana because traffic was diverted to the Blanka tunnel,” added Hřib. “The primary reason for investing tens of billions of crowns in the Blanka tunnel was to settle down Mala Strana,” he added.
“Now we have experienced a kind of test, which should have been done in 2015 when Blanka opened, and we will evaluate the impact,” Hřib said.
“We will also have an intensive dialogue not only at the municipality but also with the Prague 1 district about how we will approach this problem in the future,” he added.
The repair of the line began on 28 January and was originally scheduled to end on 1 April, but thanks to favourable weather it was shortened by a week. Before the resumption of normal operation, a historic tram ran between Malostranská and Újezd today (Monday, March 27).
“We have a great deal of work ahead of us, but I think this is one of the important steps towards making the centre of Prague similar to the centres of other world metropolises, so that you can get there by public transport but it does not burden the city district,” said Terezie Radoměřská, Mayor of Prague 1.
