Recent zoning changes in Prague 6 appear to bolster the chances for a long-awaited extension of the metro to Prague Ruzyně Airport that would include eight new stops west from Dejvická.

But financial squabbling between city and state departments over who is going to foot the bill for the 14 kilometer (8.7 mile) extension seems likely to keep the project years away from coming to fruition.

Talks about building the rail connection began nearly a decade ago alongside a separate discussion to open a new airport terminal. While the new terminal opened Jan. 18 and created the space for millions of additional travelers, the rail project has languished in discussion and disagreement.

The Prague City Council approved the zoning changes Jan. 26.

Currently, three bus lines from the airport to Dejvická, Nové Butovice and Zličín serve as the only public transportation between the airport and the city.

Officials are aware that there are many hurdles to the rail link.

"This first step allows us to begin with the territory proceedings, and consequently the construction proceedings, which should then lead to the construction permit issuance," said City Councilor Radovan Šteiner. "These processes could take two to three years."

Passing the funding buck

Since its inception, the estimated cost of the metro extension has ballooned. City officials say the project could now cost as much as 38 billion Kč ($1.7 billion) — nearly double its original estimate — and there is debate over who will pay for the project.

Mayor Pavel Bém said he was confident that the city would find the funds to get the project going.

"I trust we shall find support in the state budget and we'll succeed in obtaining money from European funds," he said.

The city is likely to get help from the European Investment Bank (EIB), which has lent it more than $255 million to extend metro line C over the years.

But Transportation Ministry spokeswoman Marcela Žižková said that if the city wants to go ahead with the project it would not get any extra help from the state budget.

"Everything concerning the metro is in the city's command," she said. The ministry gives the city 412 million Kč annually, and "it is up to the city what they do with the money."

Annual funding from the Transportation Ministry amounts to 1 percent of the total estimated cost of the metro extension.

Šteiner said that since the state owns the airport, it is obligatory for the state to finance the project.

The state currently pays for 10 percent of the cost of Prague's public transportation, the lowest of any European Union capital city. In Rome, the state covers 70 percent of public transportation costs; in Amsterdam, the state covers 90 percent.

"Prague expects a clear commitment of the state on financing this project," Šteiner said. "Without such a commitment, it is not currently possible to determine responsibly the exact date when the connection starts to operate."

The Transportation Ministry could render the disagreement moot, he said, if it were to transfer ownership of the airport to regional authorities as it has in Brno, Ostrava and Karlovy Vary.

Šteiner said that general public transit fares would not increase regardless of whether or not the state offers to help fund the project, but he added that he could envision a special tariff on passengers going to and from the airport.

Need to extend

The one thing that city and state officials agree on is that a direct connection between the airport and city center is necessary.

Deputy Mayor Jan Bürgermeister said officials need to address the airport transportation problem and even Žižková called the plan "essential."

With the new terminal, the airport increased its potential annual capacity from 6 million to 11 million travelers, and that number will continue to rise. Airport officials are already planning to boost annual capacity to 20 million people by the end of the decade.

"We open new airport terminals and expect more tourists to visit Prague, but we do not provide them with adequate transportation to the city," Bürgermeister said. "Many people travel daily from Kladno to work in Prague. Every day the route is used to maximum capacity."

The project would help alleviate traffic on Evropská street, the main thoroughfare to the airport, he said.

Many Prague 6 residents don't have direct access to the metro and rely on trams and buses. Nine out of 10 residents approve of the project, according to a study published by Factum Invenio in 2005.

The district is the most heavily populated in Prague, with nearly 200,000 residents.

The Transportation Ministry scrapped plans to spend 25 billion Kč modernizing the Buštěhradská rail line between Kladno and Prague that would have had an airport stop, after it was rejected by Prague 6 residents last year.