The ongoing closures of the Elbe waterway due to bridge problems in Saxony are causing concern among Czech inland shipping companies. "It's a disaster for freight traffic on the water," says Lukas Hradsky from the shipping company EVD in Prague. Under normal circumstances, the winter would be peak season, as ships are often unable to sail in the summer due to low water levels. According to the entrepreneur, there are heavy and oversized shipments that cannot be transported by any other route.
"Inland shipping is planned for the long term," emphasizes Hradsky. It is therefore difficult to react to changes at short notice. Nevertheless, his company is trying to compensate for the losses with orders in Western Europe. Hradsky is also concerned about the image of the reliability of inland shipping among customers. Many of them are now switching to road transport, which is not a good development from an environmental point of view. Hradsky feels left alone by the governments: "My feeling is that they have other priorities."
