Assessment of the Impact of a New Motorway Connection on the Spatial Distribution and Intensity of Traffic Flows: a Case Study of the D47 Motorway, Czech Republic/ Hodnocení vlivu nového dálničního spojení na prostorovou distribuci a intenzitu přepravních proudů: příklad dálnice D47

Assessing changes in the spatial distribution and intensity of traffic flow patterns, considered one of the main direct influences of the construction of transport infrastructure, is discussed in this paper. The central element of the research is a case study assessing such changes in connection with the opening of the D47 motorway in its Lipník nad Bečvou-Ostrava section. The aim of the study is a comparison of traffic conditions before and after the opening of the motorway. The real data on the traffic load of the motorway sections are compared with the official and our own forecast, which is based on applying a basic form of the gravity model for the given area. The results of the analysis confirmed intuitive assumptions about changes in the spatial redistribution of traffic flows.