PKP Polskie Linie Kolejowe (PKP PLK) is starting the first stage of the largest rail investment in Pomerania, by signing a contract for construction works in rail line which will increase capacity and train speeds from Kashubia to the Tri-City.
The contract has been signed with a consortium comprising Pomorskie Przedsiębiorstwo Mechaniczno-Torowe, Trakcja, and Zakład Robót Komunikacyjnych – DOM w Poznańiu and covers the construction of a 28-km second track and modernisation of the existing track, as well as electrification works.
The construction works will be performed on railway Line No. 201, connecting Bydgoszcz with the Tri-City on the section from Somonino to Gdańsk Osowa, while the Line No. 229 Glincz – Kartuzy will be electrified.
The value of the works will amount to PLN 1.25 billion (EUR 291.5 million). Works on the Line no. 201 will be financed from the state budget and the ones on the Line no. 226 from the European Funds for Infrastructure, Climate, Environment 2021-2027 (FEnIKS) Programme. The works are planned to be completed in 2027.
The project also involves the reconstruction of the platforms at six existing stations and stops, which will be also adapted to passengers with reduced mobility, the construction of additional parking spaces and bicycle racks to encourage multimodality.
Under the project, more than 50 engineering structures – bridges, viaducts and culverts will be renovated and/or rebuilt, and a railway viaduct will be constructed in Barniewice, above the Pomeranian Metropolitan Railway line (PKM), a 19.5 km rail line that connects at both ends with the SKM line, the main corridor in the Gdańsk-Sopot-Gdynia Tricity area.
PKP PLK will also construct new rail traffic control system, including technical buildings in Glincz and Żukowo, that will ensure efficient and safe train traffic. The project also includes the continuation of works carried out in 2021 – 2024, which include the electrification of the section of railway line No. 229 Glincz – Kartuzy and line No. 214 Somonino – Kartuzy within the Kartuzy station together with a new section of this line with a length of 3.2 km.
This rail investment project in Pomerania will deliver passengers increased access and comfort and convenient platforms thanks to the construction of a second track, more trains will be able to leave the route. Along the line passenger trains currently run at 120 km/h and when the project will be completed, they will travel at speeds of up to 140 km/h and freight trains up to 100 km/h, from currently up to 80 km/h. The travel time of a regional train on the Kościerzyna – Gdańsk Osowa section will be shortened by about 12 minutes.
The modernisation of Line no. 201, together with the connecting lines, will improve passenger connections between Kashubia and the Tri-City and Bydgoszcz. It will enable carriers to prepare a better offer in long-distance, regional and agglomeration connections and will contribute to better connections between the railway and other transport modes. The construction of a second track will improve the line’s capacity, which will allow more passenger and freight trains to run along the line. The rail investment in Pomerania is also of great importance for improving the conditions for transporting goods to the port in Gdynia, which will increase its potential and result into the development of the Tri-City economy and the entire region.
The project will also have a positive impact on the labor market and the income of residents and entrepreneurs, contributing to the development of tourism. The modernisation of Line no. 201 is also of great importance in the context of the electrification of the PKM route and the expansion of the Gdańsk Airport.
Construction works related to the project of modernisation of the route from Bydgoszcz to Tricity have been carried out since 2021. This year works on the so-called Kartuzy bypass and Line no. 229 Glincz – Kartuzy were completed along with the construction of a new section of Line no. 214 in the area of Kartuzy station. The main works on the Line no. 201 will be carried out in seven contracts. For the second of them, on the Kościerzyna – Somonino section, the tender procedure for selecting the contractor is underway, with whom the signing of the contract is planned for December, while the remaining tenders are planned to be announced in 2025. The implementation of construction works will take place until 2030.
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