Transport ministry to end monopoly on timetables

The Czech Transport Ministry will next year open access to its public transport timetables database, the website lupa.cz reported. The ministry has drafted legislation that will end the monopoly of the firm Chaps which has been administering the database since 2001. The ministry has come under criticism for allowing the monopoly to continue; the Czech anti-monopoly agency has also launched a probe into allegations the Chaps company allegedly abused its dominant position. The company runs the popular website IDOS which offers online searching for municipal, bus and train connections.