The development of railway infrastructure opens up new opportunities for cooperation between Belarus and Latvia - N. Verkhovets

April 29, Verkhnedvinsk district / Sergei Kochetov - BELTA /. The development of railway infrastructure opens up new opportunities for trade and economic cooperation between Belarus and Latvia. This was stated by First Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications of Belarus Nikolai Verkhovets today at the solemn ceremony of opening train traffic on the second track on the Bigosovo (Verkhnedvinsk district of Vitebsk region) - Indra (Latvia) section, BELTA correspondent reports. The opening of the new railway link is also a landmark event for the development of Belarus's transport potential, said Nikolai Verkhovets. The Bigosovo-Indra border crossing accounts for 38% of the export of all Belarusian cargo and 46% of the total volume of transit traffic of Belarusian Railways. Two-way traffic in this direction makes it possible to increase the throughput of the crossing by one and a half times and additionally transport almost 7 million tons of cargo per year. This significantly increases the attractiveness of rail transport and allows for the intensification of cooperation between Belarus and Latvia in increasing exports in the future. The construction of the second track was carried out simultaneously by Belarusian and Latvian railways. "Belarus has always been not only a good neighbor for us, but also a reliable partner," noted the Minister of Communications of the Republic of Latvia, Kaspars Gerhards, at the ceremony. The new line will not only improve transport links but also provide additional opportunities for the development of the economies of Belarus and Latvia, the minister is convinced. The construction of the second track on the 7 km long Bigosovo-Indra section is the first stage of the project to increase the throughput of the Polotsk-Bigosovo section. Belarusian Railways has allocated Br17 billion for these purposes. The construction of double-track sections on the Polotsk - Latvian border section is planned to be completed by 2016. According to Belarusian Railways specialists, an increase in transit traffic by 4.4% is projected in this direction, as well as export-import traffic by 4.7%. -0-