Homeowners in České Budějovice filed a complaint regarding the horse-drawn carriage

České Budějovice - The Association of House Owners in the center of České Budějovice has filed a complaint with the ministry of culture regarding the planned restoration of the horse-drawn railway in the city. According to the association, the route does not correspond to historical sources, horse-drawn carriages will complicate traffic in the center, and the project does not address the pollution of the city by horse manure. The homeowners are also preparing a lawsuit for the administrative court, association committee member Karel Pražák told reporters today.
    "The horse-drawn railway was not in the land-use plan. The horse-drawn railway never actually existed here; this was only a branch to the salt warehouse, which served only for supply, salt was transported here," said Pražák. The restored horse-drawn railway is supposed to run along a route from the Green Sprout through the streets Česká, Radniční, and Biskupská, then across the Iron Bridge over the Malše River to the ice hockey stadium and back. According to association member Martin Malec, the historical route is contradicted by the railway leading through the square or the stabling of horses including a manure site in Háječek.
    "To this day, we have not received an answer on how the urine produced by these horses will be disposed of, how the insects related to that will be eliminated," Pražák stated. He also mentioned that the construction infringes on the property rights of the homeowners. The protective zone around the tracks will narrow the roadways and complicate traffic, and the project plans to lead public sidewalks through arcades, which are part of the houses. The association's complaint also concerns the construction of public networks in the arcades between 1996 and 1999, which violates construction and heritage law.
    According to Malec, the replica of the horse-drawn railway will not attract many tourists to the city and the city will have to subsidize it. "There is a marketing study for that, and the horse-drawn railway is reportedly unprofitable," Malec stated. He added that the horse-drawn railway will only be an attraction for a few people and will never become the main attraction of the regional city.
    The replica of the unique horse-drawn railway, which was the first to connect Linz with České Budějovice on continental Europe in the 19th century, may start to be built by the city at the turn of the year.
    The horse-drawn railway, whose project was developed by František Antonín Gerstner, connected České Budějovice with Linz in 1832. The first section, 62 kilometers long to Kerschbaum, began operations in September 1828, and four years later the entire 129-kilometer line started being used. Two horses harnessed one behind the other covered the fourteen-hour journey until the early 70s of the 19th century, when they had to make way for steam locomotives.
    In České Budějovice, the horse-drawn railway is commemorated by the guardhouse in Mánesova Street, the Salt Warehouse in Piaristické Square, and the House at the Green Sprout in Husova Street.