Lithuanian Minister of Transport and Communications Eugenijus Sabutis will visit Estonia on Tuesday, the 4th of March. Sabutis and his Estonian counterpart Vladimir Svet will discuss bilateral cooperation in transport and logistics, joint transport and military mobility projects and their financing, as well as other topics relevant to the Baltic region, informs Ministry of Transport and Communications of the Republic of Lithuania
Lithuanian and Estonian Ministers of Transport will discuss the implementation of the strategic rail and road projects Rail Baltica and Via Baltica, the development and financing of the European transport network and military mobility infrastructure in the EU’s next multiannual financial framework, as well as issues related to passenger and freight transport by rail.
The Baltic countries are seeking greater European funding for transport projects to speed up integration into the European transport network and improve military mobility links with Europe. An additional 3.5 billion euros is needed just for Lithuania’s military mobility needs.
During his visit, Minister Sabutis also plans to visit the construction site of the Ülemiste terminal and the port of Muuga, the largest cargo port in Estonia.
To improve transport ties with Estonia, a train service between Vilnius, Riga and Tallinn has been launched at the beginning of this year, following the harmonisation of the Baltic passenger train timetables. In addition, LTG Cargo, the LTG Group’s rail freight company, has successfully completed its first test run across the Baltic States to the port of Muuga this year, applying the EU rail industry standard.
In Lithuania, construction is ongoing for 46.3 km of Rail Baltica mainline embankment and engineering structures on the section from Kaunas to Panevėžys. The construction works are expected to extend to 114 km by the end of this year. The Rail Baltica project is scheduled for completion in 2030.
Three of the four sections of the 40 km long Via Baltica section from Marijampolė to Poland have already been completed, with 28.5 km of the trunk road finally modernised. The last section, at the Lithuanian-Polish border and the Suwalki Corridor, will be completed this year. Design work is also underway on another section from Kaunas to the Latvian border.