Czech Republic faces widespread road closures and traffic jams amid construction and accidents
A series of incidents and infrastructure projects have disrupted traffic across the Czech Republic. A personal‑car crash on the D48 near Frýdek‑Místek injured a 31‑year‑old woman and halted the highway for about an hour. In Ostrava‑Proskovice a 33‑year‑old driver died after his car left the road and hit a tree. A trolleybus collided with a car in Jihlava, and a truck‑bus confrontation in Zábřeh led to injuries and a police investigation.
Major construction work is also curbing mobility. The existing bridge over the Sázava in Havlíčkův Brod will be demolished and replaced, requiring a complete closure from 20 May 2024 for 14 months, with a provisional bridge serving only emergency services. Similar long‑term projects are under way at the Bojiště site in Trutnov and at Černé mosty in Tábor, where traffic lights are being replaced. In Český Krumlov the demolition of a Vltava bridge will block boat traffic from 18 May to 18 June.
Highway congestion is severe on major routes. Construction near Brno has produced a truck column on the D1 stretching from Jihlava to Brno, at times exceeding 50 km and even delaying an ambulance carrying an infant in an incubator. Comparable jams, up to five kilometres long, occur on the I/35 near Litomyšl. These disruptions affect thousands of commuters and freight operators daily.