Business news

MINSK, 14 January (BelTA) – The Belarusian Railways has received €160,000 from the European Union to install GSM-R terminals on locomotives plying between Vilnius and Minsk, BelTA learnt from the press service of the Belarusian Railways.

The EU provided technical support as part of the project to improve passenger express communication between Vilnius and Minsk of the Lithuania-Latvia-Belarus cross-border cooperation program for 2007-2013 of the European Neighborhood and Partnership Instrument.

According to the Belarusian Railways, the equipment will be made by Belarus’ AGAT SYSTEM with which the Belarusian Railways signed the corresponding contract in October 2014.

It is planned that locomotive terminals supporting the EU radio communication standard GSM-R will be installed in 34 locomotives in H1 2015. This rolling stock will secure passenger transportation between Minsk and Vilnius.

The GSM-R radio communication standard has been designed for the railway transport. It will provide the Belarusian Railways’ locos with an uninterrupted contact with train dispatchers and station operators in Lithuania, enhance the safety of passenger operations.

The Belarusian Railways, the Ministry of Transport and Communications of Lithuania and the Lithuanian Railways signed a partnership agreement in December 2013 as part of the project to improve the passenger express communication between Vilnius and Minsk.

The Belarusian and Lithuanian railways launched the Minsk-Vilnius speed passenger communication project in 2010. The first stage of the project was implemented in 2011, which allowed reducing journey time between the two capitals from four to three hours. The second stage cut the journey time to two and a half hours as from 1 June 2013. The third stage of the program is underway.