A major rail freight infrastructure programme for Slovenia that would cost EUR 1 billion is to be put to a referendum, following a vote by the country’s Parliament. The 27-kilometre line is designed to speed up freight traffic between the city of Divača and the country’s state-owned Luka Koper seaport. The referendum is due to take place on September 24.
The lobby group Taxpayers Don’t Give Up and the main opposition party, the centre-right Slovenian Democratic Party, had pushed for the referendum, arguing that the line, based on the Government’s projections, was too expensive. The government has already won EUR 44.3 million of European Union funds for preparation of the track, while its neighbour Hungary had also said it is ready to invest about EUR 200 million in the project, as it is landlocked and therefore relies on Koper for much of its sea freight.
Slovenia has a strong rail freight presence, with state-owned SŽ Cargo providing a range of domestic and international intermodal services. Freight is also carried by Adria Transport, Slovenia’s first private rail carrier.
The country is crossed by two of the European Union’s Core Network Transport Corridors – the Baltic-Adriatic and the Mediterranean.
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