The Riga Loop is planned for the second phase of the "Rail Baltica" railway project, said Marco Kivila, chairman of the board of the joint venture of the three Baltic states – the joint-stock company "RB Rail", in an interview with the LETA agency.
He explained that the first phase of the "Rail Baltica" project includes the construction of the entire main line by 2030, while the timelines for the implementation of the second phase have not yet been agreed upon with the relevant ministries of the Baltic states.
"Right now, everyone is working on the implementation of the first phase. When it transitions into a stable execution phase, I think there will be more time to discuss the second phase," Kivila noted.
He confirmed that the ministry had requested a cost-benefit analysis for both options of connecting the southern and northern parts of Riga to the main "Rail Baltica" line, but there is currently no funding allocated for this, so the process is delayed.
"Right now, Latvia needs to focus on building the connection to the border with Lithuania and then the bridge over the Daugava to Salaspils, so that a junction can be created with the 1520 mm gauge railway and a shuttle train can be launched to the Riga stations, thereby connecting Riga to the main "Rail Baltica" line as quickly as possible," Kivila explained.
He indicated that the first phase of "Rail Baltica" provides for the construction of the entire main line, however, in terms of funding priorities in Latvia, the focus is on the section from the Lithuanian border to Salaspils, provided that no other alternative funding sources are found.
According to information from the joint venture "RB Rail", the cost of the first phase of the "Rail Baltica" project in the Baltic states could amount to 14.3 billion euros, of which 5.5 billion euros is in Latvia, but potential savings could reach 500 million euros through optimization of technical solutions, and other ways to reduce costs are also possible.
The total project costs, according to the cost-benefit analysis, could reach 23.8 billion euros. In the previous analysis from 2017, it was estimated that the project would cost 5.8 billion euros.
The "Rail Baltica" project involves the creation of a European standard railway line from Tallinn to the borders of Lithuania and Poland, in order to further connect the Baltic states with other countries in Europe. A new railway line with a width of 1435 mm and a length of 870 kilometers is planned to be built in the Baltic states, along which trains will be able to travel at speeds of up to 240 kilometers per hour.
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