The enterprise owning part of shelters at public transport stops in Rīga has started removing them, and the City Council has no replacement shelters yet, Latvian Radio reported April 16.
Transport
In view of the negative impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Latvian airline airBaltic ended the year 2020 with a drop in revenue of 72% and a loss of €256 million, according to information from the airline April 15.
Due to the Rail Baltica project, frequent changes to the traffic organization are expected in Rīga. Relatively small jobs have now been started, the workers say that everything is still ahead, Latvian Television reported April 13.
Latvia will introduce the so-called Covid-19 certificate or the European Union's Digital Green Certificate, by mid-June, according the information report prepared by the Ministry of Health presented to government on Tuesday, April 13.
On Tuesday, April 13, Latvian government extended the deadline until which third-country arrivals must carry out a mandatory Covid-19 test on arrival in Latvia, until June 15.
Round 2 of the Salu bridge complex reconstruction is due to take place between April 14 and July 17, and traffic changes will be in place, the Rīga City Council Transport Department said April 13.
At a meeting on Tuesday, April 13, the Cabinet supported amendments to the Law on Ports, which provides for the state takeover of the management of Latvia's largest ports. The draft law has yet to be viewed in the Saeima.
In March 2021, the Latvian national airline airBaltic transported 29,200 passengers, 79% fewer than last year, the airline said in a statement April 13.
Over the last six months, the State Construction Control Bureau (SCCB) has taken 170 samples of traded diesel fuel and 95- and 98-grade petrol fuels and tested them in an accredited laboratory. Non-compliance with fuel standards was established in four cases.
In the first quarter of 2021, the number of passengers serviced at Riga International Airport decreased by 91%, according to operational data on the airport's performance during the first three months of the year published April 9.
After several years of rapid growth, Latvian national airline airBaltic was brought back down to earth in 2020 by the Covid-19 crisis. It laid off staff and saw its routes and schedules cut back dramatically. Chairman and chief executive Martin Gauss spoke to LTV to review the situation and outline future strategy in a drastically changed aviation environment. You can watch the full interview above and read an edited version below.
Estonia will remove the existing travel exceptions for Latvia, Lithuania and Finland and travelers will be required to quarantine on arrival from April 5, ERR News reports.
The Latvian Association of Passenger Carriers has sent a letter to Saeima, to Prime Minister Krišjānis Kariņš (New Unity), the Cabinet of Ministers, and President Egils Levits, in which the association expresses no confidence in Transport Minister Talis Linkaits (New Conservative Party).
In order to continue collecting traffic data during the active pedestrian and cyclist season, an experimental use of bicycle lanes on A. Čaka Street in Rīga will be extended until September 1, the Riga City Council Traffic and Transport Affairs Committee decided on Monday, March 29.
On Thursday, March 25, the Saeima adopted amendments to the Road Traffic Law, which include several regulations.
A week since the renewal of flights to and from third countries, 76 travelers have arrived in Latvia, Latvian Radio reported March 25.
Latvia is working on the introduction of the so-called digital green certificate, with the aim of facilitating travel at least within the European Union (EU), said Environment Minister Artūrs Toms Plešs on Latvian Television March 25.
The risks of bringing Covid-19 from abroad in an aircraft are currently much lower than by land, according to both the State Police and the Civil Aviation Agency, Latvian Television reported March 23.
As of May 2, scheduled flights between Rīga and Liepāja could resume, which could take place four times a week in summer, Latvian Radio reported March 23.
Driving practice in category B has been allowed again for a week, and streets are full of instruction vehicles, Latvian Radio reported March 22.
Since Wednesday, following permission of flights from and to third countries, there have been three such flights, Rīga International Airport spokeswoman Laura Kulakova told Latvian Radio March 21.
Most Latvians already know their travel plans for this year: many will travel around Latvia, one in seven plan on flying, and almost a third won’t go anywhere, according to a March survey by Citadele bank and research agency Norstat.
The government allocated €55 million to the construction of state roads, which will allow 31 road sections to be restored this year, covering 270 kilometers, the Ministry of Transport said March 18.
During the first two weeks of March, Rīga municipal ticket inspectors, alongside municipal police, carried out nearly 1,200 checks on public transport routes in the Latvian capital and made nearly 500 people get off buses, trams and trolleybuses as a result, according to information from Rīgas satiksme (Riga's transport).
On March 18, the city of Liepāja is celebrating 396 years since it was founded, Latvian Radio reported Thursday.
Rīga International Airport is ready to provide an opportunity to carry out an express Covid-19 test, LETA reported March 17.
The Saeima hopes to adopt the laws necessary for the reform of Rīga and Ventspils ports already this year, so that they can start operating in a new legal structure as state capital companies by the middle of next year, Transport Minister Tālis Linkaits told Latvian Radio March 16.
On Wednesday, March 17, flights to and from third countries are resumed in Latvia.
The Rail Baltica joint venture RB Rail AS said March 15 it had signed a contract March 11 with Italy's TRT Trasporti e Territorio for the implementation of the Rail Baltica Transport Demand Model (DM).
On Monday, March 15, the coalition agreed to step up the major port reform in Rīga and Ventspils proposed by the New Conservative Party (JKP).