It’s hard to believe, but movement has begun at the construction site of the new Central Station in Riga 0 24

EDzL also reported that final works on the installation of glass elements in the passenger canopies above the platforms have begun. It is planned that the glazing work will last approximately three to four months.

Thus, the station building will gradually acquire the planned architectural appearance. The total glazing area of the new building is 1,500 square meters.

EDzL board member Janis Naglis noted that this is an important stage in the construction of the southern part of the Central Station in Riga, which will significantly change the visual identity of the station and mark its transformation into a modern transport hub of European level.

"The full construction of the railway systems will continue in the coming years. It is planned that train traffic will be able to fully utilize the southern part of the station starting in the summer of 2028, and the connection to the Rail Baltica station at the airport is expected to be completed by the end of 2029," Naglis noted.

EDzL indicated that construction work in the southern part of the new Central Station in Riga is currently being carried out in accordance with the contract concluded with the Central Finance and Contracting Agency (CFLA) for the construction project of the southern part of the station. The total value of the contract is 138.7 million euros, of which funding from the European Union Recovery Fund is 114.628 million euros, and funding from the state budget is 24.072 million euros.

The contract was signed in November 2025 and stipulates that the main works — roof installation, facade construction, canopies above the platforms, finishing works, creation of passenger access infrastructure, as well as mechanical, electrical, and plumbing works — must be completed by August 31, 2026, after which a confirmation of the completion of the main works will be issued.

The construction work at the site is being carried out by the construction consortium "BeReRix."

The executive director of "BeReRix," Guntis Aboltins-Abolins, noted that the work is continuing according to plan, with the aim of handing over the southern part of the station building to the client in the second half of this year, including the platforms, information systems, and necessary infrastructure.

He emphasized that one of the conditions for using the EU Recovery Fund financing was very tight construction deadlines, which required high mobilization of resources to coordinate the schedules of global manufacturers and suppliers with the work schedule in Latvia and the winter season. According to him, the project will be completed on time and in accordance with the requirements.

At the beginning of 2026, "BeReRix" completed the construction of the load-bearing metal structures of the roof of the new station building and continues to install insulation layers and architectural metal panels. The construction of the load-bearing structures of the passenger canopies, forming a continuous line along the platforms — from the new station building to the entrances to the elevators for three new platforms — has also been completed.

The functions of FIDIC engineer, construction supervision, and expertise at the site are performed by LLC "Forma 2."

The contract also provides for the participation of JSC "Latvijas dzelzceļš" (LDz) as a partner in the project. As a potential infrastructure manager, LDz is actively involved in addressing issues of transfer and management of the facility to ensure timely provision of necessary information and technical readiness for performing management functions.

The southern part of the Central Railway Station in Riga will be able to fully perform the functions of a passenger station after the completion of the 1520 mm track infrastructure works. Full commissioning is linked to the completion of this infrastructure, which is currently planned for mid-2028.

It was previously reported that the cost of the first phase of the "Rail Baltica" project in the Baltic countries could reach 14.3 billion euros, of which 5.5 billion euros is in Latvia, but taking into account indexing, the amount could rise to six billion euros.

The total cost of the project in the Baltic countries, according to the cost-benefit analysis, could reach 23.8 billion euros. In the previous analysis in 2017, the total cost of the project was estimated at 5.8 billion euros.

The "Rail Baltica" project involves the creation of a European gauge railway line from Tallinn to the border of Lithuania and Poland to connect the Baltic countries with other European countries. In the Baltic countries, a new railway line of 870 kilometers with a European track width (1435 mm) and a maximum train speed of up to 240 kilometers per hour is planned to be built.

EDzL is a state-owned capital company with a share capital of 4.445 million euros.