The construction of modern and comfortable railway platforms started in the autumn of 2022, with completion expected by the end of 2023 when the new electric trains started running in Latvia.
Of the planned 48 stops, none had been completed by August last year. Despite this, here's what Agnese Līcīte, a spokesperson for Latvijas Dzelzcels, said at the time: "All 48 stations and stops must be completed by the end of [2023]. For our part, we are monitoring the progress of the project."
The plan could not be implemented. The reason: the Covid-19 pandemic and Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine created a crisis in construction, according to Latvian Railways, which extended the project deadline by a year. The first fully ready stop was only in June this year - it is "Bieriņi/Children's Hospital", located on the Jelgava line. Five more stops were already available to passengers. This means that only about 12% of all the stops that were to be upgraded could be used by the public.
Rinalds Pļavnieks, a member of the board of Latvian Railways, told Latvian Radio at the beginning of the summer that the project was planned to be implemented by the end of this year, but said that it would not be possible to say for sure until the beginning of August.
However, even these plans will not be fulfilled. In the direction of Tukums, Aizkraukle, and Bolderaja, the works are expected to be completed within a year, maybe even later. In total, more than 20 stops will be affected.
One of the main reasons for this is that the builders are not able to mobilize resources well, Pļavnieks concluded.
"Their ability to implement administrative project management has an impact because we see that the works carried out are much bigger than the invoices we receive. This means that the cash flow of the builders is affected, which then in turn affects the whole supply chain further down the line. There have certainly also been questions about the capacity and competence of Latvian Railways to deliver a project of this unprecedented scale. Then this year, quite significant internal structural changes have already been made, resources and competencies have been added," said Plavnieks.
In July, the government extended the availability of funding without objections. The project was originally expected to cost more than €44 million, most of it from the European Union and the rest from Latvian Railways. So far, the amount has not changed, although the builders are already applying for an increase. So says Plavnieks, stressing that the increase could be up to 15%. This is stated in the contract.
This means that the project could end up costing around €50 million.
Transport Minister Kaspars Briškens (Progressives) said that if the project was completed on schedule, the extra money would probably not be needed.
"I have to admit that now that the new board of Latvian Railways has started working, I am also receiving more information about these projects. So far, the information has been contradictory. We are starting to get more accurate information from the new board," Briškens said.
