Truckers protest in Litomeřice

Czech truckers parked around 100 lorries along a route in Litomeřice on Wednesday to call attention to the outgoing prime minister’s failure to introduce toll rebates. Traffic almost came to a standstill in the north Bohemian town for several dozen minutes, although hauliers insisted obstructing traffic was not their aim. The problems were attributed to transport limitation imposed by the police ahead of a meeting of EU transport ministers. Last year, outgoing Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek promised Czech truckers toll rebates of up to 13 percent. Hauliers insist the situation in road transport remains critical, with the economic crisis following high oil prices and the strong euro.