The model of predicting wood skidding methods based on input data enables reliable and consistent prediction of a wood skidding method across larger areas. In order to determine the importance of influential factors (terrain slope, distance to logging road, development stage of stands, share of conifers in the growing stock) for choosing a wood skidding method, a method of paired comparisons was used. The economic justification of a denser road network is that the costs of wood skidding would decrease more than the costs of wood transportation would increase. The eliminated skidding fields, for which the wood skidding costs exceed the average wood skidding costs with regard to various types of wood skidding, are the areas where the planning of a denser forest road network is the most sensible. Prior to delineating a route of the planned forest roads, insufficiently open areas had to be found, which were determined based on the current density of forest roads, which equals the optimal density, and based on the terrain and ecological restrictions for siting forest roads (terrain slope > 50 %, protection forests and forests with direct and indirect ecological functions). Seven planned forest roads were analysed in economically justified areas; a thorough economic analysis established that they are economically justified. By varying the model costs of the construction and maintenance of forest roads, the period in which the investment and operating costs would be reimbursed was calculated (the depreciation period amounts to 40 years). The calculation took into account an annual 3% interest rate on invested capital and the values were discounted to the present. A calculation of the yield of the planned forest roads based on differences in the forest tax indicates the economical sensibility and priority of constructing an individual planned forest road.
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