A Latvian parliamentary inquiry has cast doubt on the legality of the country’s Rail Baltica plans. The head of the inquiry committee, Andris Kulbergs, says that the current plans never received the green light from parliament.
According to Kulbergs, the original plan was mandated by parliament in 2017. It included a “simplified baseline for connecting the Baltic countries and their capitals to the Rail Baltica railway.” Riga was to be connected via a single rail branch, and the plan was supposed to cost 1,2 billion euros. However, current construction entails more than that approved plan.
“It has not been approved”
The committee has now found that another proposal made its way to the government, according to Latvian publication LSM. The so-called “Riga Loop” idea, which is now under construction, grew from it. It includes more connections, including a connection to Riga Airport.
Kulbergs calls the Riga Loop “beautiful, convenient and comfortable”, but also says that the questions remains if “it is originally approved.” He concludes that the “expensive, luxury idea” has “not been approved, as we can see from the documents at the moment.”
From 6 to 24 billion euros
“Parliament has not given a mandate for such a solution. It has been taken to the Cabinet of Ministers, but it has been taken without a financial assessment”, Kulbergs said. What a lack of such parliamentary approval would mean for Rail Baltica is unclear, as construction is already underway.
The construction plans for the Riga connection may not be approved by parliament, but a possible bypass of capital city Riga was already on the table. Skipping Riga is supposed to reduce costs and speed up the completion of the mainline. The EU has set a deadline for the latter’s completion by 2030. By then, Estonian capital city Tallinn should have a European gauge connection to Warsaw.
The projected cost of Rail Baltica has grown from six billion euros to 24 billion euros due to design obstacles and inflation. Latvia is struggling to find money to finish its part of Rail Baltica, which has put its development under the spotlight and has now led to the inquiry committee’s findings.
