Biggest Investment in History of Slovak Railways Put in Operation in Zilina

Zilina, 22 January (TASR) - The biggest investment project in the history of Slovakia's rail transport, the modernisation of the Zilina railway hub, was put in operation on Thursday afternoon, with the ceremonial ribbon being cut on one of the platforms of Zilina railway station by Transport Minister Jozef Raz (a Smer-SD nominee) and railway infrastructure operator ZSR's general director Miroslav Garaj. "We've seen 14 kilometres of track from east to west and two kilometres from north to south modernised at the end of this investment. This construction project has brought in state-of-the-art signalling systems and a modern dispatching centre. Trains will be able to run at a speed of 160 kilometres per hour on these tracks," said Raz. The minister added that passengers have gained barrier-free access to six renovated platforms and better transfers from the station to sports stadiums. "In addition, the expansion and elevation of the underpass on Kysucka Street has significantly facilitated commuting for people from the Kysuce area to Zilina," stressed Raz. The ZSR general director pointed out that Zilina railway station has undergone complete track modernisation. According to him, the Zilina railway hub is one of the most important in Slovakia. "On average, 239 passenger trains, 57 freight trains and several service trains pass through Zilina station on weekdays, which is 300 trains per day on average," noted Garaj. The Zilina railway hub was modernised by the Pod Dubnom Consortium, led by Strabag, with a delay of roughly one year. The delay was caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, problems with material supplies, complex geological conditions and problems related to land ownership arrangements. The total contractual price amounted to €318 million. The project was covered from EU funds. ko/df