Temporary platform construction is planned to begin in mid-July at Riga Central Railway Station, according to Artis Grinbergs, Chairman of the Board of Latvijas Dzelzceļš (LDz), speaking on Latvian Radio’s “Krustpunktā” program.
He explained that LDz has started implementing the temporary platform project at 16 railway stations, using wooden structures. Currently, temporary platforms are being built at Torņakalns and Zasulauks stations, and the next one will be at Riga Central Station, with construction planned to start on the 14th of July.
Overall, the plan was to install temporary platforms at all 16 stations by the end of this year. However, the experience from Torņakalns shows that the work may be completed faster, possibly during the summer, depending on cooperation between the involved parties.
LDz has previously informed that it plans to build temporary raised passenger platforms at 16 stations by the end of this year. These solutions are needed in stations that are scheduled for modernization under the Rail Baltica project, as implementation has been delayed.
These nine stations include Riga Central, Torņakalns, Zasulauks, Depo, Vagonu Parks, Jāņavārti, Daugmale, Salaspils and Saulkalne.
Raised platforms are also needed at six more stations – Rumbula, Dārziņi, Cena, Inčupe, Kūdra and Kaibala. These were not included in the platform modernization project due to low passenger numbers and plans to close them.
Temporary platforms will also be built at Valmiera station to provide level boarding for passengers using trains operated by the Estonian railway company Elron, once services between Tartu and Riga begin.
It has also been reported that LDz group’s revenue in 2023, according to audited data, was 233.74 million euros, which is 11.3% less than in 2023. However, the group’s losses increased significantly to 39.44 million euros.
LDz is the manager of public-use railway infrastructure and the parent company of the LDz group.
Read also: Latvia’s Ministry of Finance plans major staff reductions