Czech Republic among EU’s cheapest transit countries for lorries

Thanks to its location in the heart of Europe, the Czech Republic has always been a popular transit country for trucks. But it is not the only reason. According to a new study put together by the Centre for Economic and Market Analyses (CETA), the Czech Republic is also one of the cheapest countries in terms highway fees and fuel costs.

Photo: Barbora Němcová

Data released by CETA and published by the Czech News Agency on Tuesday shows that lorry drivers on Czech roads pay on average 46.50 euros (around 1,195 crowns) per 100 kilometres to cover the costs of highway tolls and fuel, which is less than in any of the Czech Republic’s neighbouring states.

In Germany, a 100-kilometre stretch of highway costs trucking companies around 58.21 euros, while in Slovakia, the cost is around 55.19 euros. The most expensive EU state in this respect is Italy, where costs of highway toll and petrol exceed 70 euros per 100 kilometres.

One reason behind the Czech Republic’s popularity as a transit country is low highway fees. The highway toll here currently stands at around 8.54 euros (around 220 crowns) per 100 kilometres. In Croatia, the rate is nearly 28 euros. In terms of diesel costs, the Czech Republic remains among the EU average.

According to the CETA report, the Czech state in 2018 collected around 92 billion crowns on fuel tax, an increase of 1.48 percent on the previous year. The highway toll collected in the Czech Republic increased by nearly four percent last year to 10.8 billion crowns.

Since the launch of a nationwide truck tolling system more than 12 years ago, the Czech state has collected over 98.7 billion crowns.

The volume of truck transport in the Czech Republic has been high on a long-term basis. One reason is the high share of industry in the country’s GDP, which increases freight transport on Czech roads.