Blog ČSAD AUTOBUSY Č. Budějovice are another South Bohemian transportation provider operating buses on __CNG__.

Thanks to the construction of the CNG filling station, which will soon open in Písek, this development is gaining momentum.

ČSAD AUTOBUSY České Budějovice a. s. is celebrating its tenth anniversary in April, building on more than half a century of rich professional tradition from ČSAD České Budějovice.

ČSAD AUTOBUSY České Budějovice a.s. operates local and long-distance passenger bus services across the Czech Republic and abroad. The company provides commuter services around South Bohemian towns—České Budějovice, Milevsko, Český Krumlov, Kaplice, Vodňany, Prachatice, Vimperk, and many more. Daily, it transports over thirty-five thousand passengers, covering more than forty percent of the South Bohemian region.

Another significant activity is the operation of CK Saturn.

CNG into the city—starting in Písek!

The company also runs suburban and urban public transport in Písek. Písek is the second South Bohemian city where two buses powered by compressed natural gas (CNG) will soon operate in city service.

This is made possible by a new filling station in the Jitex industrial zone in Písek. ČSAD AUTOBUSY České Budějovice are among the South Bohemian transport providers embracing alternative fuels—actually implementing the ecological and economic benefits of CNG in practice.

“Although we have a new and high-quality fleet, we're constantly exploring ways to further improve the company's efficiency. We discussed CNG as the best alternative, combining ecological benefits with several economic advantages. These include lower operating costs and the practical fact that CNG is nearly impossible to steal. Indeed, fuel theft was a significant issue for us,” says Vladimír Homola, the company's CEO.

Tests Show All Positives

“CNG buses offer many benefits. We tested this with two low-floor buses in active service in Český Krumlov, operating in both urban and suburban routes. The main issue was that residents of Krumlov are saddened and want us to leave the buses there,” smiles CEO Vladimír Homola. Thanks to the new filling station, additional CNG vehicles will soon join the fleet in Písek, including accessible models purchased for the city.

As major transport operators, we support and welcome the expansion of CNG filling stations. We want more stations to be built. Besides obvious ecological benefits—reducing noise, harmful emissions, and dust—pragmatic aspects are important to us. For example, it eliminates the need to supply our own diesel refueling stations—no tankers or transportation costs for fuel—and CNG's lower price is attractive. So far, our pilot operations haven't revealed significant negatives, aside from slightly different engine maintenance comparable to that of gasoline engines. The engines run quieter, warm up faster, and provide a warmer, more comfortable interior—especially important in city buses that frequently ventilate. We have ordered seven additional CNG buses for the current fleet, and I believe that by the second half of the year, we’ll have around twenty, which is nearly ten percent of our fleet, comprising two hundred to two hundred ten vehicles depending on the season,” says Vladimír Homola, CEO of ČSAD AUTOBUSY České Budějovice.

More CNG Vehicles Coming Soon in Písek and Beyond

“We are launching the CNG pilot project in Písek, where we have a very cooperative relationship with city officials, aiming to benefit passengers. We are also considering expanding CNG usage to other locations. We want existing and new filling stations to be public—beneficial not only for our fleet but also for corporate and individual motorists. I also speak for the South Bohemian Chamber of Commerce. Personally, I look forward to presenting our station to partners and operators from Austria. They will see the new technology in action for the first time because, although ÖBB-Postbus GmbH is a dominant public transport provider in Austria with 2,500 buses, they haven't yet adopted CNG. They will be pleasantly surprised by the filling speed and the ecological and economic advantages of CNG. Fuel prices have also risen in Austria, further motivating the shift. We see CNG development as a sign of progress across our entire company,” concludes Vladimír Homola.

The operator of the first public CNG filling station in Písek is the ZLINER ENERGY company from Zlín. The exclusive importer and supplier of technology from the German manufacturer Schwelm Anlagentechnik GmbH to the Czech Republic is MOTOR JIKOV Strojírenská a.s. based in Soběslav. This company specializes in developing, manufacturing, and installing a full range of CNG filling technologies—from home stations and corporate solutions to public refueling points—and provides maintenance services for these systems.