When it comes to electric trains the board of Pasažieru vilciens (PV) is responsible for everything, said Latvian President Edgars Rinkēvičs in his interview to LTV programme Rīta panorāma.
He reminded that approximately three months have passed since the “train inauguration ceremony, which many button-pushers had attended”, but now these people get strangely quiet when are asked about responsibility for problems with new electric trains.
Next week, the president will meet with Minister of Transport Kaspars Briškens to discuss the situation in the transport sector, including the problems with new electric trains. Until now the ministry mentioned the 9th of May as a deadline for new trains “to start rolling, but they aren’t”, said the president.
“The first thing I want to know is what the board of Pasažieru vilciens have been doing since 2017. They are responsible for everything,” said Rinkēvičs, making it clear that the heads of the company’s board should be the first “to roll” when it comes to problems with electric trains.
Also read: New trains in Latvia are still undergoing dynamic tests
PV started providing passenger transportation services using the new trains received from Škoda Vagonka around mid-December 2023. Before their deployment, the new trains underwent rigorous testing within Latvia’s railway infrastructure. Despite this, however, all sort of problems keep getting found in those trains. This is why there are problems with trains in Latvia.
The first two Škoda Vagonka electric trains were delivered to Riga in June 2022.
Each train consists of four train cars. The length of a single train is 109 m. Each train has 436 seats and enough room for 454 standing passengers. All trains have same-level boarding from adapted train platforms.
The total costs of the project reach EUR 257.889 million.
Also read: BNN ANALYSES | Disappointing Kėdainiai, the much-touted Vilnius-Riga train route will not be adjusted so far
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President: I want to know what Pasažieru vilciens board has been doing since 2017. They are responsible for everything
