Rail Baltica railway crossings in Riga
How will Rail Baltica affect the urban environment?
1. The construction of Rail Baltica will contribute to the city's rail infrastructure by making it safer:
- The rail crossings will be built in two levels - there will not be need to cross the actual tracks anymore.
- The new crossings will be accessible for pedestrians, cyclists, people with strollers and people with disabilities.
- Cars will be able to cross more easily since there will be no more waiting at the rail crossing.
2. The connectivity of different parts of the city will be fully ensured:
- Rail Baltica routes in Riga going to Imanta will use the existing railway corridor, therefore a new division of the city will not be created.
- The existing railway crossings will be retained or replaced and rebuilt according to the needs of modern city dwellers.
- New crossings will be created. Their exact solution and location will be determined during the design process.
What kind of crossings does Rail Baltica plan in Riga?
- The crossings to be constructed in the course of the Rail Baltica project were determined in 2016 by the location of the route in Latvia, with wide public participation (more than 5 000 people participated in 16 meetings). According to this, there were planned 15 pedestrian and transportation crossings in Riga.
- During an in-depth research of the route, Rail Baltica engineers offered 7 additional crossings, therefore there will be 22 crossings designed in Riga (Map 1).
- These 22 crossings will be developed in detail during the technical design of the Rail Baltica sections in Riga and Riga Central Station.
What will happen to the rest of the crossings?
- The crossings, which are the responsibility of other involved parties (Riga City Municipality, Latvijas Dzelzceļš), will be analyzed and strengthened within the framework of the local planning of the public-use railway line Rail Baltica (Map 2).
- The timetable for the development of the local plan is arranged to be synchronized with the timetable for the construction of the Riga section of the Rail Baltica railway line.
When will it be certain exactly what crossings will be built in Riga?
- The master solutions for the construction of the 22 Rail Baltica crossings will be ready by the end of 2020.
- The common procedure for the design and construction of Rail Baltica crossings will be defined and included in the local planning solutions.
- The local planning will also determine the exact division of responsibilities (including design, construction and financing) between the Rail Baltica project implementers and the Riga City Municipality.
- The development of the local plan is anticipated to be completed with the design of Rail Baltica in 2021.