From March 10, society can get acquainted with the alternatives of the Rail Baltica railway section between the Polish-Lithuanian border and Jiesia (Kaunas). The communities in the areas through which the railway will pass, relevant organizations, and the public are invited to take an active part in the territory planning process and provide reasoned comments and suggestions during public deliberation.
“Rail Baltica is the most important strategic project in the field of railways, which will allow connecting Lithuania and the Baltic States with Western Europe. The modern high-speed rail connection of Rail Baltica is especially significant in the current geopolitical environment, therefore, we strive for the residents and business representatives of our country to be able to use new, environmentally friendly transport and logistics opportunities as soon as possible,” said Loreta Maskaliovienė, Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications.
The project developers – joint-activity partners Sweco Lietuva UAB and DB Engineering & Consulting GmbH – selected four alternative routes for the Rail Baltica railway between Jiesia (Kaunas) and the Lithuanian-Polish border. Following public consultations with the public, this year, the optimal alternative will be selected.
Back in 2015, Lithuania implemented the first stage of the Rail Baltica project when a European-gauge railway line was built from the Polish-Lithuanian border to Kaunas. This became the impetus for the emergence of new Rail Baltica railway parameters. Upon completion of the further stages of the project, passenger trains will run at a speed of up to 250 km/h and freight trains – up to 120 km/h on this strategically important railway section for Lithuania and also Latvia and Estonia.
“The railway built during the first phase of the project will continue to operate. To this day, we have two regular trains running between Kaunas Intermodal Terminal and Western Europe. In addition, the railway currently in operation will be used for regional passenger transport as well,” said Arenijus Jackus, the Coordination Manager of the Rail Baltica project supervised in Lithuania by LTG Infra.
The prepared Concept Paper of the Engineering Infrastructure Development Plan (EIDP) and the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) report is available in the TPDRIS information system (http://www.tpdris.lt/lt_LT/web/guest/sarasas, TPD Nr. S-NC-00-19-8), on the website of the Ministry of Transport and Communications (https://sumin.lrv.lt/lt/veiklos-sritys/projekto-rail-baltica-gelezinkelio-linijos-lenkijos-ir-lietuvos-valstybiu-siena-jiesia-ruozo-modernizavimo-susisiekimo-komunikaciju-inzinerines-infrastrukturos-vystymo-planas), and on the website of the SEA document drafter (https://www.sweco.lt/pranesimai/svarbus-pranesimai/informuojame-apie-parengta-projekto-rail-baltica-gelezinkelio-linijos-lenkijos-ir-lietuvos-valstybiu-siena-jiesia-modernizavimo-susisiekimo-komunikaciju-inzinerines-infrastrukturos-v/). In addition, the conceptual solutions are available on the Web GIS website (https://arcg.is/1OevCL).
Until the public presentation of the Polish-Lithuanian border – Jiesia communications EIDP and SEA on the Rail Baltica railway line, which will take place remotely on April 11, the public and interested organizations will be able to submit their reasoned suggestions. The Ministry of Transport and Communications will, within 10 business days from the day of public deliberations, examine the proposals submitted by the public, and will provide clarifications and written replies to the persons who have submitted proposals.
Rail Baltica is the largest railway infrastructure project in the Baltic States, which will include the construction of an electrified dual European-gauge railway connecting Warsaw, Kaunas, Vilnius, Panevėžys, Riga, Pärnu, and Tallinn. The total length of the Rail Baltica railway line in the Baltic States will reach 870 km: Lithuania – 392 km, Latvia – 265 km, Estonia – 213 km.