Final work is underway on the D3 motorway between České Budějovice and Tábor to prepare the section for a maximum speed of 150 km/h, but the exact start of the test operation has yet to be confirmed.
Currently, the last works are being carried out on the D3 motorway between České Budějovice and Tábor to prepare the route for the new 150 km/h speed limit. The test section in South Bohemia will be the first motorway in the Czech Republic to allow this speed. Whether the test operation will begin in September, as originally announced, remains unclear.
“We will announce the exact start date in good time, as soon as we can be certain that everything is properly prepared. At the moment, however, we cannot specify it,” explained František Jemelka, spokesperson for the Ministry of Transport, in response to the news portal novinky.cz.
According to the Road and Motorway Directorate (ŘSD), the main preliminary work has been completed, and additional restrictions for motorists are expected to be removed. Only minor adjustments remain, such as work on the hard shoulder or on the crash barriers.
The test operation allowing 150 km/h is planned for the section between Planá nad Lužnicí (kilometre 84) and the Úsilné exit (kilometre 131). The new speed limit will only be permitted under ideal conditions – on a dry road, with good visibility, and low traffic density. The pilot scheme is intended to run for at least one year.
Only at the end of August was a new section of the D3 between Nažidla and Dolní Dvořiště in South Bohemia opened to traffic. For the time being, it is operating with just one lane in each direction, as work on the second carriageway continues.
Once completed, the D3 motorway will form the new main route from Prague to the border with Austria. A connection via Freistadt to Linz is planned. For now, the D3 will end just under 300 metres before the Austrian border – the connection will only be completed once Austria has finished the extension from Freistadt. Planning is currently underway for the final stretch to the state border at Wullowitz.
