Riga's Kundziņsala Overpass, Built for €82.6 Million, to Open on 1 November
Riga's 863.5-metre Kundziņsala overpass, linking Tvaika Street in Sarkandaugava with the island's port territory, opens to traffic on 1 November. The project cost €82.6 million in total.
A new overpass connecting Kundziņsala, an island that hosts the industrial area of the Freeport of Riga, with the city's main street network will open to traffic on 1 November. The project was carried out jointly by Riga City Council and the Freeport of Riga Authority, and its total cost is €82.6 million. The link will let freight vehicles reach the port without driving through the city centre.
What the overpass connects
The 863.5-metre overpass links Tvaika Street in Sarkandaugava with the public area of Kundziņsala and the port's industrial zone. It is a key section of Riga's inner bypass, and together with the Eastern Arterial and the Daudersala overpass it is meant to steer freight onto main roads. This should reduce the burden of heavy traffic in the centre and residential neighbourhoods, along with noise, vibration and air pollution.
About 360,000 trucks a year, or roughly 1,000 a day, are processed at the port's checkpoints on Kundziņsala. The island is home to several logistics and cargo-handling companies, including the largest container transshipment and logistics centre in Latvia. Renewable energy projects are also being developed there, with up to half a billion euros of private capital planned over the coming years. The overpass will also improve the movement of military equipment and cargo between port terminals and the national road network.
New checkpoint and transition
With the opening, a new port checkpoint at 42 Uriekstes Street (Delta 17) will start operating, with six traffic lanes, automatic licence plate recognition and digital cargo data exchange. The Freeport of Riga Authority invested €1.3 million in its infrastructure. Until the end of 2026, freight traffic may use both the new overpass with Delta 17 and the existing Delta 1 checkpoint. From 1 January 2027, traffic to and from the Kundziņsala port terminals will be routed only via the new overpass.
Construction details
The overpass consists of eight trestle structures. The fourth is a bridge over a branch of the Sarkandaugava river, whose steel structure was assembled on the bank and pushed over the water in sections over about four months using the incremental launching method. The overpass crosses three railway branches and an above-ground oil product pipeline in two places. A lit pedestrian and cycle path and three lifts have been built. The general contractor is the partnership “RK link”, formed by Hanza Construction Group, Binders and Tilts.
