Salomets: Rail Baltica delay will have little effect on freight transport
Anvar Salomets, chairman of the management board of Rail Baltic Estonia, says a delay of a couple of years in construction will not significantly affect freight carriers. Completion of the Estonian section has been moved to the end of 2034.
Anvar Salomets, chairman of the management board of Rail Baltic Estonia, the company building the international Rail Baltica railway line in Estonia, says that postponing construction deadlines by a couple of years will not materially affect freight transport. He made the remarks on Thursday on "Esimene Stuudio" ("First Studio"), a programme on Estonian public broadcaster ETV.
New deadlines
Completion and commissioning of the Estonian section of Rail Baltica has been pushed back to the end of 2034. The stretch from Tallinn to Pärnu is planned to be finished by the end of 2032.
Why freight carriers are not heavily affected
Salomets noted that the cargo expected to travel on Rail Baltica is already moved mostly by road vehicles today. In the future, a significant share of it will shift to rail.
He stressed that businesses act rationally. The delay gives them more opportunities to adapt their operations and prepare for the launch of the railway.
Salomets added that, in the long term, the shift from 2030 to 2032 does not matter much for freight transport.
