Give me money! Latvia urged to spend money on Tartu-Riga railway line

According to the press service of the Tartu City Hall, at the meeting Elron representatives presented plans for opening the line and discussed the possibilities of joint marketing cooperation to popularize the route and inform passengers. Latvian municipalities and tourism organizations present at the meeting expressed interest in cooperation.

According to Tartu Mayor Urmas Klaas, the issue of restoring the railway connection between Tartu and Riga has been on the agenda for a long time, and Elron is making serious preparations for the opening of the line in cooperation with the Ministry of Climate Change and the Ministry of Agriculture and Regional Development.

“We brought together representatives of local governments most interested in the line to discuss how to launch it through joint cooperation and what different regions could benefit from it. The meeting showed that there is great interest in the route and a willingness to cooperate in marketing to ensure its active use,” Klaas added.

At the meeting, Elron board member Märt Ehrenpreis spoke about the current status and launch schedule of the Tartu-Riga passenger train line, the train compositions planned for the line, and cooperation with the Latvian railway company “Vivi” as part of the launch of the route.

“The opening of an international railway connection between the two countries is, first of all, a very large cooperation project, the result of which depends on finding common desires and interests,” said Ehrenpreis. “The interest in the line seems to be equally high in southern Estonia and northern Estonia.” Latvia”.

Head of Tartu Tourism Annika Ojasaar and Tartu Marketing Manager Marleen Otsus spoke about why the new railway line is important for tourism and marketing in Tartu and southern Estonia, as well as immediate plans for marketing cooperation. “To launch the Tartu-Riga line, we plan to continue marketing cooperation with both Latvian partners and local governments in southern Estonia, so that the line becomes popular both in Estonia and Latvia,” added Head of Tourism Department Annika Ojasaar.

The train will depart from Tallinn and, according to current plans, stop in Jõgeva, Tartu and the border town of Valga/Valka. On the Latvian side, stops are planned in Valmiera, Cesis, Sigulda, Zemitany and Riga.

According to initial plans, the train will depart from Tartu to Riga and back once a day. Travel time between Tartu and Riga will be 3 hours 25 minutes, and from 2025 it will be possible to increase the number of flights.