Sakova: Kosice Airport Road and Tram Link Project Faces Funding Uncertainty

Kosice, 31 May (TASR) - The future of a project to build a four-lane road and tram line to Kosice Airport, which was to be implemented by the state, hangs in the balance, and while the plan was previously halted by a property rights dispute over land, it is now facing a lack of funding amid fiscal consolidation, Economy Minister Denisa Sakova (Voice-SD) confirmed to TASR. "It is financially demanding and, as we are in a period of fiscal consolidation, we must carefully consider how many euros remain available within the state budget for such investments. Everything will therefore depend on the condition of the state budget and on how successfully we can fulfil in the future the commitments made by the previous leadership of the Economy Ministry," the minister said after an away-from-home government session in Haniska on 27 May. At the same time, she pledged efforts to secure funding. "I want to assure residents of the Kosice region and the Kosice-okolie district that we will make every possible effort to secure within the state budget the resources needed for additional infrastructure," she added. Preparations for the four-lane road and tram line linking Kosice Airport and the local industrial park were first announced in 2018 in Kosice by then economy minister Peter Ziga (then Smer-SD). "The government has already allocated around €24 million for this infrastructure," he told journalists at the time. The project, titled Improvement of Infrastructure in the Kosice-Peres Industrial Park, included the construction of a road with a grade-separated connection to the R2 expressway in the Peres area, with a single-track tram line running alongside it. The aim was to improve transport for employees commuting to the industrial park as well as passengers travelling to the airport. The project was managed by state-owned company MH Invest II, which signed memoranda of understanding in 2018 with the city of Kosice, the Kosice Public Transport Company (DPMK) and Kosice Airport. Progress was halted later that year by a court dispute in which the claimant sought restitution of part of the land through which the road was planned to run. The case, in which both the Kosice District Court and the Kosice Regional Court dismissed the claim over the years, reached the Supreme Court in 2024. "For this reason, MH Invest II could not continue implementing the project until the lawful owner of the affected land has been determined. Given the time elapsed since preparations began, the company is assessing the opportunities and risks of further continuation of the project," the Economy Ministry told TASR in January 2024. The court proceedings ultimately ended last year. "The appeal proceedings were terminated by a ruling of the Supreme Court on 29 October 2025 following the claimant's withdrawal of the appeal," Anna Pancurova, spokesperson for the Kosice Regional Court, told TASR. As a result, the first-instance court's decision dismissing the claim has become final. mf