Budapest's Mayor Obstructs Development
On Wednesday, Budapest Mayor Gergely Karacsony and leftist-liberal councilors, in alliance with the Tisza Party, decided to try to block the government’s Grand Budapest project in Rakosrendezo, once a railway hub, by exercising their pre-emption right. This would effectively thwart the creation of 14 thousand new jobs, the construction of a flyover, the extension of the yellow metro line, the transformation of the disused railway yard and a direct rail link to the airport. This major investment does not benefit Budapest residents, the mayor claims. The experience of previous years shows that wherever Budapest's mayor and his circle prevented a government development project, no further move was taken later on. One such example was the boycott of the construction of the prestigious Fudan University.