UKRAINE: National railway Ukrzaliznytsia reopened two lines to the Polish border on February 17 after modernisation work.
A total of 68·3 route-km of line has been rebuilt. Two routes have reopened to link Khyriv with the border stations at Starzhava to the southwest and Nyzhankovychi to the north, passenger traffic through the Starzhava border crossing having ceased in 2010. The railway from Sambir west of Lviv to Khyriv has also been renovated.
Of the rebuilt sections, 29·5 km is 1 520 mm gauge, 8·6 km is 1 435 mm and 30·2 km is dual-gauge.
As part of the project, 10 bridges, nine operational buildings and four platforms were refurbished, and renewal work was undertaken at Khyriv, Nizhankovychy and Starzhava stations.
‘It took railway workers less than a year to complete all the infrastructure works. This project is important for the safety of Ukraine, the development of its export potential, as well as the mobility of the population’, said Oleksandr Kamyshin, CEO of Ukrzaliznytsia. ‘In addition, in the future, Polish residents will gain the shortest route between the two border localities through the territory of Ukraine.’
Following final sign-off by the Ukrainian cabinet, local cross-border services are expected to resume using the 1 435 mm gauge tracks at both border crossings, operated by PKP. A meeting of Polish and Ukrainian government officials in February 2022 in Krasichyn led to an agreement to develop a local service linking the Polish towns of Malchowice and Kroszenko; this would use both the reopened border crossings to run via Khyriv.
