Riga, April 22 (LETA) - Eesti Liinirongid, the Estonian national passenger train operator operating under the Elron brand, will test a passenger train on the Riga-Valga section from Monday, April 22, to Wednesday, April 24, representatives of Elron informed LETA.

Elron board member Mart Ehrenpreis said that a two-car train had a test drive in February this year, while a three-car train will be tested this week on the Latvian railway infrastructure.

He pointed out that the test run will test signaling, safety systems and radio communications.

"The test runs are essential for Estonian Stadler Flirt passenger trains to obtain the necessary certification to operate in Latvia. The aim is to start Tartu-Riga trains this summer, but the exact date will depend on the outcome of the certification process," said Ehrenpreis.

The Latvian State Railway Technical Inspectorate has issued a permit for Elron to carry out test runs.

Passenger services between Riga and Tartu were originally planned to start by October 2023, but are now scheduled to start this summer.

The Riga-Valga-Tartu rail route is being developed by Elron in cooperation with the Estonian Ministry of Climate, Ministry of Regional Affairs and Agriculture, the City of Tartu, the Latvian national passenger train operator Pasazieru Vilciens and other partners in Latvia.

In January, the Latvian, Lithuanian and Estonian passenger train operators Pasazieru Vilciens, LTG Link and Elron launched the Tallinn-Tartu-Riga-Vilnius train. The journey takes more than ten hours and requires a change of trains in Valga.

In late December 2023, LTG Link, the passenger transport subsidiary of the Lithuanian state-owned railway group Lietuvos Gelezinkeliai, started train services between Riga and Vilnius.

Talks on linking the three Baltic capitals with passenger train routes were started in September 2021, when the Baltic Express travelled from Tallinn via Riga to Vilnius to mark the European Year of Railways. It brought together ministers of the time, representatives of the Baltic rail industry and the European Commission, as well as the promoters of the Rail Baltica project.