In public service obligation

Leo Express began its operation as a private commercial carrier without any subsidies on its operation at the end of 2012. From December 2019, Leo Express will also operate regional transport in public service obligation in the Pardubice region (CZ) and in collaboration with carrier Arriva in Zlín region (CZ). We have a long-term interest in other regional and long-distance transport in public service obligation, which is ordered by the Ministry of Transport of the Czech Republic and by individual regions (authorities).

The common goal of carrier and authorities is the long-term satisfaction of the passengers and authorities. The key to success is high-quality rolling stock and customer service. Both is currently being appreciated by our passengers in 7 European countries, especially on rails in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland and Germany. It is time to increase the standards of regional and long-distance PSO transport in these countries as well.

Commercial risk versus public service obligation

To operate a service at a commercial risk means that the operation needs to earn on itself, otherwise it will generate loss. The income comes only from passengers and the carrier isn’t supported by any subsidies from the public budget.

Passenger transport in the public service obligation is ordered by the Ministry of Transport of the Czech Republic in the case of long-distance transport and by individual regional authorities in case of regional transport. If the operation under such obligation is not profitable, the authority (i.e. Ministry of Transport or the individual region) will pay the difference. The carrier is therefore capable of operating a line with limited number of passengers without risking any loss.

The current goals of transport in the public service obligation

The main goal of authorities and carriers is to increase the occupation of each individual connection. The more passengers each connection transports, the more income it will generate and the less money from public budget is needed.

GOAL: INCREASE THE OCCUPANCY RATE

• THE HIGHEST NUMBER OF CARRIERS IN THE HISTORY
  • that means possibility to compare their offers in a public tender or in market consultations
• IMMEDIATE INCREASE OF RAILWAY’S ATTRACTIVITY AND BETTER USE AND CONTROL OF PUBLIC SPENDING
  • public money into regional transport as a long-term investment into public services
• ATTRACTIVITY OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT IS DETERMINED BY THE COMPLETENESS OF SERVICES
  • new vehicles, on-board services, Wi-Fi connection, follow-up connections, door2door transport…
• LIBERALISATION OF THE MARKET MEANS MORE JOB OPPORTUNITIES
  • in the rail sector as well as in connected services, support of the employment market and businesses in the whole region
• THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A LUCRATIVE AND A NON-LUCRATIVE TRACK IN  PSO TRANSPORT

Regional transport as a complex service

Regional transport cannot be only a train, but it should always be accompanied by other connected services, such as follow-up connections, possibility of light personal transport in the city, additional services on-board and good basic equipment of the vehicles. That is how a complex regional transport should look like for the best possible use of railway for passengers.

Carrier selection methods

According to the current legislative, the authorities can choose the carrier for PSOs in a public tender, or they can award the contract directly based on offers from different carriers in so called “market consultations”.

The process of selecting a carrier for PSOs

Advantages of liberalisation of the market

Liberalisation of the railway market brings significant advantages to passengers as well as to the ordering authorities. Due to competition the carriers have to increase the quality of their services, which brings more passengers to the railways and that results in less individual car transport, which significantly contributes to less traffic on the roads and better environment. 

• Better services
• New services for passengers
• Lower prices for passengers and the authorities
• Increase in number of passengers using rail transport
• Low impact on the environment
• Development of multimodal transport

Leo Express in public service obligation

The black trains of Leo Express were operated from 2012 only at a commercial risk. From 2019 they will set out to regional tracks as well. We have been awarded a contract for a PSO in the Pardubice Region (CZ), where we will secure the operation of two regional lines with our modern diesel units Alstom LINT, which are barrier-free, air-conditioned, with Wi-Fi connection and electrical sockets. Additionally, Leo Express will operate an express line Prague, Pardubice and Wroclaw (PL), which will be serviced by electric units Stadler FLIRT, which currently service our lines between Prague and Ostrava/Košice/Krakow/Staré Město u Uherského Hradiště.

Our trains will also help out in the Zlín Region (CZ), where we collaborate with Arriva to secure public regional transport. Here we will use some more diesel Alstom LINT units.

For media

Press releases, graphics, and other media information you can find here.

Contact

Are you interested in more information? Contact us at [email protected]