GeographiaTechnica, Vol. 10, Issue 1, 2015, pp 51 to 65 PERMEABILITY OF CZECH-POLISH BORDER USING BY SELECTED CRITERIA Jaromír KOLEJKA 1 , Wiesława ŹYSZKOWSKA 2 , Kateřina BATELKOVÁ 1 , Stanisław CIOK 2 , Sylwia DOŁZBŁASZ 2 , Karel KIRCHNER 1 , Tomáš KREJČÍ 1 , Andrzej RACZYK 2 , Waldemar SPALLEK 2 , Jana ZAPLETALOVÁ 1 ABSTRACT: Czech-Polish border, 800 km long, includes the longest-lasting international borders in Europe in its western half. In the period of real socialism it represented a genuine development barriers and obstacles of cross-border cooperation. After both countries joined the EU (2004) and the Schengen area (2007), the importance of boundaries as barriers significantly weakened. The joint research team of Czech and Polish geographers evaluated the permeability of 100 km long sections of the border according to the criteria for which are publicly available data and GIS processing technology. Following criteria were used for the border permeability evaluation: the presence of orographic or hydrologic barriers in two levels of intensity, the number of road crossings, the number of other crossings, the availability of the inland roads, contrast of population density in the border micro-regions, the number of entrepreneurs from the neighboring country in the villages on the other side of the border, the number of solved micro-projects and the number of solved large projects. Numerical characteristics of criteria were transferred to score and the resulting values are divided into three levels of permeability, while using 1) the same weights of criteria and 2) the doubled weights of the key criteria. Cartographic presentation of the results then showed persistent difficulties with permeability especially in the central section of the Czech-Polish border. Key-words:Natural barrier, Cross border co-operation, Population pressure, Foreign entrepreneurs, Border segments. 1. INTRODUCTION Even in the early 90s of the last century the terms of cross-border cooperation and euroregions were unknown to most Czechs, Poles, Hungarians and other inhabitants of the countries in Central and Eastern Europe. Sealed state borders of these countries did not allow almost any cross-border contacts. People did know neither the place nor the neighbour on the other side of the border. Boundaries arising during the last three centuries and even intensified after World War II, thus bring impassable barrier between regions that historically belonged to each other, and amplified their peripheral and neglected position as not too attractive areas to live. After the year 1989, the desire of the population living along the border for the same quality of life as in the interior of the country has led towns and cities to seek new common solutions of problems specific to the border regions. Following the example of Western European countries, regional associations have been established and have started to cooperate with similar organizations on the other side of the border. Thus in Central and Eastern Europe were created "euroregions" that as "bridges" unite neighbouring countries and which became the driving force of cross-border cooperation (http // www.euregion-silesia.cz). The possibility of a free movement of workers has been established later on as well as the conditions for entrepreneurial activity for the European 1 Institute of Geonics,60200 Brno, Czech Republic. 2 University of Wroclaw, 50-137Wroclaw, Poland.