The Estonian Government dreams to get rid of Vilnius

The Estonian Government dreams to get rid of Vilnius

Estonian Transport Minister Juhan Parts does not want Rail Baltica to pass through Vilnius. He even said that members of Lithuanian government are "fools" because they insist on the need to connect Rail Baltica with Vilnius instead of Kaunas, according to ee24.com citing the European media.

Rail Baltica is the railway connecting Germany, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, and in the future it can go as south to Venice as north through the underwater tunnel to Helsinki. It will pass through all the capitals except Vilnius. When looking at the map it's obvious that the construction of line through the main city of the country will require funding (an additional €300 million), and will significantly increase the length of the track and the travel time.

Rail Baltica route map
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Lithuanian Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius wants to set a compromise: let the road goes through Kaunas, but with a branch to Vilnius, by the Lithuanian budget. Note that the construction of the railroad is by 85% funded by the EU. According to Butkevičius, in case of reduction of this share, the construction of the railway would be "economically irrational."

Recently it was announced that the land in Lithuania that's necessary for Rail Baltica construction, will be bought by the authorities at the market price, rather than by price that owners offer. Thus, owners and prospective buyers of land in Lithuania won't be able to profit at the expense of the budget.