TALLINN (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 28th November, 2019) A groundbreaking opening ceremony for the main line of the Rail Baltica high-speed railroad, which is set to link western Europe with the Baltic states, took place in Estonia on Thursday, the contractor of the project said in a press release.
"Today, the cornerstone of the first object on the Rail Baltica main line, the Saustinomme viaduct, was laid to mark the beginning of Rail Baltica's high-speed rail link. Saustinomme viaduct, which crosses the main route of Rail Baltica, is the first cooperation project between Rail Baltic Estonia and the Estonian Road Administration in establishing Rail Baltica. Various intersections between the future Rail Baltica and the existing infrastructure will be built in cooperation with the Road Administration and major network operators in the coming years," Finnish construction company YIT Oyj said.
According to the contractor, the event was attended by Estonian Prime Minister Juri Ratas, Minister of Economic Affairs and Infrastructure Taavi Aas, and European Commission Director-General for Mobility and Transport Henrik Hololei.
Rail Baltica will be 730 kilometers (454 miles) long and is set to connect western Europe with the Baltics via Warsaw, Vilnius, Kaunas, Riga and Tallinn. This is the largest infrastructure project the region is engaged in, with an overall cost of about 5.8 billion Euros ($6.4 billion). The European Union will cover 85 percent of this total. The construction is expected to be completed in 2026.
