Romanian state-owned railway company needs EUR 12.2 bln for investments in infrastructure

Romania’s state railway company CFR needs EUR 12.2 billion for investments according to the strategy for developing the national rail infrastructure between 2018 and 2022, which is now up for debate. The document underlines the decline in rail passenger and freight traffic in the last 30 years and the progressive degradation of the local railway infrastructure due to insufficient financing, local News.ro reported. Romania is second-to-last in the EU in terms of public funding for the rail transport sector, which also explains the low performance in this area, the strategy also mentions. The total investments are split into several big chapters. Refurbishing and modernizing the Romanian segment of the Rhine-Danube railway corridor would require EUR 4.44 billion. Another EUR 2.55 billion would be needed to modernize the Orient/East-Med corridor. Modernizing the railway connecting Bucharest’s main train station (Gara de Nord) to the Henri Coanda International Airport would also require almost EUR 100 million. CFR estimates that some EUR 9.2 billion worth of investment projects can receive EU funding. editor@romania-insider.com