BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 7. On Tuesday, July 2, the Coordination Committee of the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) approved the results of the 2024 funding call, allocating a total of 2.8 billion euros to support 94 infrastructure projects across the European Union, Trend reports.
Latvia secured 159.2 million euros in funding, which will support several major national and cross-border initiatives in rail and road modernization, as well as digital transformation.
The largest portion of Latvia’s allocation — 153.5 million euros — was granted to the Rail Baltica project for the implementation of its priority activities. This is part of a wider 295.5 million euros investment across the full Rail Baltica corridor, which aims to enhance regional mobility and connectivity by integrating the Baltic states into the European high-speed rail network.
In addition to Rail Baltica, the European Commission approved support for the cross-border digital project “Digital Capacity Management Implementation 2025–2029,” aimed at improving the digital management of railway operations across the EU. The total project received 45 million euros in CEF funding. Latvia, represented by Latvijas dzelzceļš (Latvian Railways), will receive 4 million euros , with a 50 percent co-financing rate. The project focuses on modernizing digital infrastructure, developing harmonized telematics reference files, and upgrading central systems managed by RailNetEurope (RNE), ultimately advancing interoperability for freight and passenger rail services across the EU.
Two additional projects involving Latvijas Valsts ceļi (Latvian State Roads) also received European Commission approval.
The first project, “Traffic Management Information Services upGRADe Europe,” was awarded 13.75 million euros overall. Latvia’s share amounts to 844,600 euros , with half covered by CEF funding. This initiative aims to improve the accessibility and quality of cross-border traffic information services for road users throughout the EU, resulting in more efficient use of the core road network and enhanced road safety.
The second project, “VERKKO – European Network for Safer, Greener, and Digital Traffic Management,” received 73.98 million euros in total CEF funding, with Latvia’s contribution totaling 1.23 million euros (50 percent co-financed). VERKKO will roll out cooperative intelligent transport systems (C-ITS) across 12 EU countries and key urban hubs to improve sustainable mobility, digital traffic management, intermodal freight transport, and cross-border connectivity. The project’s key benefits include a harmonized deployment of C-ITS, enhanced digital infrastructure, and improved mobility and safety across the TEN-T road network.
These investments mark a significant step forward in Latvia’s transport modernization, digitalization, and alignment with broader EU connectivity and sustainability goals.