The operation of railway passenger transport is characterized by high economic costs and also high requirements for personnel and vehicle means. Existing rail transport operators aim to provide transport services as modern, efficient and cost-effective as possible, while meeting all safety and quality standards. In the case of public service obligations, they must also respect the requirements of the contracts. Currently, a significant transformation of the railway passenger transport operation throughout Slovakia is being prepared in order to increase its efficiency, sustainability and quality. This primarily concerns public service obligations. The line Košice - Prešov - Lipany - Plaveč - (Muszyna) (line No 188) will also be affected. Transport services on this line will be significantly modified and intensified, inter alia, because of the introduction of an integrated transport system in the relevant region. The Route 188 service plans were prepared in two different Transport Service Plans (TSPs). The first one was prepared by the Prešov and Košice Regions. In parallel with the first TSP, a second TSP was prepared by the Ministry of Transport and Construction of the Slovak Republic (MT&C SR) for the entire Slovak railway network, which also includes line No 188. There are several differences in the proposlas included in TSPs for the line in question. The main objective of this paper is to compare the traffic service proposals in the individual TSPs developed for Line No. 188 based on a comparison with the status quo and a comparison of selected operational indicators, as well as to determine the basic advantages and disadvantages.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the railway sector experienced a significant worldwide decrease in the number of passengers due to the reduced transportation capacity of trains introduced for limiting social contacts and passengers fears from the disease. The reduction in population mobility resulting from national anti-pandemic measures led to the fact that carriers in the Slovak Republic began to optimize and limit the rail transport performance. Several measures were also implemented to reduce the risk of the spread of the COVID-19 disease so that passengers feel safe while traveling by train. Globally, we are entering the third year of coronavirus, and the pandemic is expected to continue even this year. For this reason, forecasting passenger demand for rail transport is becoming increasingly important and it is necessary to take measures in public passenger transport that will consider the reduced mobility due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The paper deals with the proposal of a methodology for planning transport services on selected regional railway lines during the COVID-19 pandemic.