A major project targets improvement of a railway access to the Port of Gdańsk in Poland benefiting the region’s communities, economy and environment. Upgrades to tracks and other infrastructure increase freight rail transport capacity, while protecting wildlife and making river transport easier along the line.
- 03 June 2016
The Pruszcz Gdański–Gdańsk Port Północny section of Poland’s line no. 226 is being modernised in the two phases of this EU-funded project. This section transports freight between the maritime Port of Gdańsk and the E 65/CE 65 railway line. The upgrades increase rail freight capacity, improving the line’s efficiency and competitiveness for businesses providing and using freight services and the region’s economy. Other stakeholders and the environment also benefit from better navigation conditions on the Martwa Wisła river and wildlife is better protected.
Extensive modernisation
Project works upgrade track infrastructure, buildings and control and communication systems for this part of the important Baltic-Adriatic Corridor transport infrastructure. In addition to improvements along line no. 226, they cover adjacent parts of railway lines no. 846, 965 and 721 and track systems at the Gdańsk Olszynka railway station.
Overall, the works impact 11 km of railway. New tracks, including new track bed and drainage systems, and an overhead line are being constructed for almost 9 km of line 226, while new turnouts – railroad switches or points – are being built at Gdańsk Olszynka and Gdańsk Port Północny stations, as well as Gdańsk Święty Wojciech and Motława Most flat crossings.
Seven railway bridges are also being constructed, including a new one over the Martwa Wisła river. Another bridge is being modernised. The new Martwa Wisła bridge complies with waterway requirements, improving river navigation, while all eight bridges include animal crossing facilities to support biodiversity around the railway. The project is also building three railway viaducts.
Gdańsk Olszynka and Gdańsk Północny stations receive new signalling centres to improve safety and efficiency, further enhanced with several new command-control and telecommunications systems along the line.
Better connections
The modernisation is expected to increase the Port of Gdańsk’s transhipment capacity on land by 70 000 tonnes per year and railway line throughput to the Port by 150 pairs of trains per day. The shift from road to rail freight transport from this increased capacity is projected to result in EUR 26 183 634 of discounted socio-economic benefits for the period 2013-2042.
These works upgrade the railways lines to meet the requirements of the European Agreement on Important International Combined Transport Lines and Related Installations (AGTC). On a technical level, they aim to increase the effectiveness of the command-control system and reduce infrastructure maintenance requirements and costs.
There are two phases to the project, the first in the 2007-2013 programming period and the second in the 2014-2020 period. It will create 574 jobs during both phases of the work.
Total investment and EU funding
Total investment for phase 1 of the project “Improvement of a railway access to the Port of Gdańsk (a bridge + double-track railway line)” is EUR 36 319 251, with the EU’s Cohesion Fund contributing EUR 18 157 290. For phase 2, total investment is EUR 69 956 373, with the Cohesion Fund contributing EUR 35 048 712. Both contributions are through the “Infrastructure and Environment” Operational Programme. The investment falls under the priority “Environment-friendly Transport”.