📋 Tender Overview
The development of railway infrastructure and the Rail Baltica project have long been associated with fast travel to foreign countries or convenient movement between cities. However rail transport holds far greater significance especially in todays context.
Military historian Karolis Zikars and the Rail Baltica construction site in Lithuania. Photo - from personal archive and LTG group
In Lithuania we are changing the railway gauge for the 5th time and every change so far has been driven by war-related reasons. According to military historian Karolis Zikaras railways today are more important than ever - not only economically but also in terms of national security.
A railway can determine the outcome of war. Looking at the development of railway infrastructure the first railways in the world were used to transport freight and later passengers. Almost from the very beginning in the 19th century this infrastructure became the backbone of military logistics.
According to Zikaras World War I is a reflection of how societal modernization changed the nature of warfare. Unlike in the feudal era where a king would fight another king in WWI nations fought nations and millions of people needed to reach the battlefield as quickly as possible.
In the second half of the 19th and first half of the 20th century railways played a vital role in transporting armies. How else does one redeploy infantry? One either walks or rides a train. Those who can move massive numbers of soldiers faster than by marching gain the advantage. And the army still needs to be fed supplied with bullets artillery and ammunition. Infrastructure led humanity into modern warfare - conducted by mobile rapidly redeployable and high-firepower units. But even the most powerful strike force is useless if it cannot be quickly activated and supplied in time says Zikaras.
We are only now starting to build the infrastructure we need. Most of Lithuanias railway system was inherited from Tsarist Russia. In the 19th century the Russian Empire chose to build a broader railway gauge than Europes with a strategic goal - to prevent the enemy from freely moving along the railway if they invaded Russian territory.
During World War I the German army occupied all of what is now Lithuania and maintained control until the wars end. During that time they converted the railway infrastructure to the European standard gauge. Independent interwar Lithuania also used the 1435 mm wide railway gauge.
After the 1940 Soviet occupation the system was again reverted to the Russian standard. According to Zikaras this network was built to serve the needs of the Russian Empire - transporting Ukrainian grain to Latvian ports through Lithuania or enabling Russian elites to travel to Western Europe.
Kaunas railway bridge destroyed in the war. Photo - Lithuanian Railway Museum
Today 93 percent of Lithuanias 3462 km railway network is broad-gauge (Russian) and only 7 percent is European standard. Only now with the implementation of the Rail Baltica project are we building railway infrastructure for our own needs - both economic and security.
In Lithuania the LTG Group also initiated the FREE Rail strategic program aimed at both physical and digital integration of the Baltic countries into Europes transport infrastructure map.
A detailed analysis of Russian and Belarusian components revealed that nearly 60 percent of the parts used in Lithuanias railway infrastructure and rolling stock were produced in those countries with spare parts also manufactured there. FREE Rail identified alternative suppliers in friendly countries and aims to establish a secure EU-standard data exchange system.
The railway remains a backbone of war. In Russian military logistics railways play a key role in mobilization and operations - as shown during the annexation of Crimea and the invasion of Ukraine. Can investments by an unfriendly neighbor on their railway construction or repairs be a sign of war?
According to Zikaras Russia still heavily depends on railway transport. Thats why we see their offensive logic: first secure control of railway lines and hubs so reinforcements can be moved and transport guaranteed by rail. We must take this into account and make it as difficult as possible for adversaries to use our railway infrastructure by changing the standard. At the same time we need to ensure the mobility and supply of our own military by rail. These are two essential strategic directions.
Interestingly although armored vehicles have high mobility and capability no tank is designed to drive hundreds of kilometers to its target on its own tracks. While we can fly many resources by air heavy equipment is still most efficiently transported by rail which remains a central axis of logistics.
A good time to review our strategy says Zikaras. Assessing the current state of railway infrastructure the military historian notes that Lithuania long a transit country finally has the chance to strategically reorganize its inherited system.
Reconstruction of railway tracks after World War II. Photo - Lithuanian Railway Museum
He also points out that railway development has broader effects - it shapes urban development. Some towns and even district centers exist only because rail lines were laid through them.
Now is the perfect time to reassess our railway logic: does the route from Kaunas to Klaipeda really need to go through Siauliai? Shouldnt the port city be directly connected to the Rail Baltica line? It is time to stop focusing on Moscow and Minsk and start addressing the needs of our own society business and military suggests Zikaras.
At the moment a new study on modern Lithuanias railway infrastructure is underway. Its goal is to define a clear and strategic vision for developing the railway network as the country transitions to the European standard.
This is a historically important step as the aim is to create an optimal and economically beneficial railway network for Lithuania with a long-term per
