Financing the development of transportation network brings permanent risks
Press Release from July 26, 2007
Ministry of Transport has improved its approach towards the concept of transportation network development, in comparison with the precedent conditions presented in the report from audit No. 02/10. However, the upturn process has not been finished yet as any obligatory conception, which would lead to pragmatic and efficient steps throughout the implementation stage, has not been authorized by the government so far.
Several risks of the current concept of transportation network development were found during the audit, carried by auditors from the Supreme Audit Office (SAO). The auditors focused on management of the financial resources provided for transportation network development and scrutinized the moves accepted after the previous audit. The audited period was from 2003 till the end of the audit, including associated data from the previous time. The audited body was Ministry of Transport.
Worst of all, the major documents have not been processed yet, such as the law of public transportation network, ground plans for a transport service, or a concept of common logistical points. Presently, some poorly purposeful traffic constructions might draw subventions from GEPARDI – the general plan of transportation network development.
“The fact that an order of the realization proceedings and a progress chart are still being prepared reduces efficacy of the programme financing. Inconsistent analysis of profit and costs of transportation constructions and low esteem of the analysis outcomes eventually lead to spending public money on realization of construction plans whose effectiveness is either low or cannot be shown at all,“ said František Dohnal, president of SAO.
Downgraded cost estimations usually cause entire lack of financial resources for the realization of transport network constructions. „The trouble could escalate if the EU granted no financial aid, especially with so expensive engineering of high-speed railways that are not subject to mutual interest of EU countries at the moment,” said Dohnal.
The auditing operation was included into the 2006 Annual Audit Plan of SAO under No. 06/36. Petr Skála, Member of the Board, controlled the operation and drew up the audit report as well.
Radka Burketová
Press Speaker
Supreme Audit Office