Think Railways

The Transport ministers of Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland have signed a declaration on the implementation of the ‘Rail Baltica’ project, in the framework of ‘TEN-T days 2015’ event, organised  in Riga on 22-23 June.

“A clear momentum on the progress of one of the major railway projects in the EU ‘Rail Baltica’ is seen. European railway gauge - a uniform infrastructure standard - will create new possibilities for market integration, economic development and new mobility solutions for passenger and cargo transportation in the Baltic region”, the project was summarized by Rimantas Sinkevičius, Minister of Transport and Communications of the Republic of Lithuania.

In addition, an exhibition devoted to the ‘Rail Baltica’ project was opened at the Central Railway Station square. Here a symbolic plaque will mark the location of the future ‘Rail Baltica’ Riga Station and symbolize the inclusion of the Baltic Region in the joint traffic flow of Europe.

This year, a particular attention is devoted to the development and financing of the EU core transport network.

“Lithuania supports the intention expressed by the EU Transport coordinators to develop further the trans-European transport network and look into alternative financing instruments as well as to find additional resources in order to ensure the connectivity. Although private financing cannot be the only solution for the implementation of the whole TEN-T, it can be an important part of it”, underlined Minister Rimantas Sinkevičius.

The joint venture ‘RB Rail’, Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania submitted in February to the European Commission (EC) the joint application for the allocation of the first round of funding for the “Connecting Europe Facility” (CEF). The application is currently being evaluated by the EC, the funding agreement is expected to be signed this autumn.