Czech Republic and Bavaria launch a joint tender for the operator of fast trains to Munich4/7/2023|Press releasesThe tender for the selection of a railway undertaking to provide transport services from 2027 for a period of 15 years on the rail link between Prague and Munich has been officially launched today by publication in the Official Journal of the EU. The aim are faster and better trains and higher quality of service on board. "We have long been dissatisfied with the quality of services provided to passengers on the main train line between the Czech and Bavarian capital. That is why we have agreed with our Bavarian counterparts to launch a joint tender for a new operator, which will bring modern trains to the tracks and better quality of services for passengers," says transport minister Martin Kupka. New vehicles will be used as fast trains from Prague to Munich, equipped as standard with for example air conditioning, Wi-Fi and low-floor access. The trains must also be able to run at the maximum speed of at least 200 km/h. The tender for a new train operator on the line Ex36 Prague – Pilsen – Munich is being processed by the Czech Ministry of Transport with the Federal State of Bavaria, represented by BEG (Die Bayerische Eisenbahngesellschaft), a subsidiary fully owned by Bavaria and responsible for the procurement, financing and control of public passenger rail transport services. The joint tender will be governed by German law and the language of the tender will be German, as the majority of the deliverables is negotiated for the German side. The deadline for submission of bids is set for 15 January 2024. Delivery is scheduled to start in December 2027. Despite the joint tender, there will still be a division of responsibilities in terms of the subsequent delivery of the public service contract. On the Czech side, the Ministry of Transport will continue to be the customer of trains under the partial contract, while BEG will continue to be the customer of trains on the German side under the second of the contracts being tendered. The Public Service Contract for the Czech territory will be drawn up in both language versions; the Czech version will prevail for resolving any future disputes. Link to the tender: Services – 399319-2023 – TED Tenders Electronic Daily (europa.eu)