Riga, 21 June 2026 — Rail Baltica’s digital transformation took centre stage on Sunday as the BIM for Rail Bootcamp 2026 opened in Riga, convening more than 100 railway infrastructure professionals from across Europe to advance Building Information Modelling standards for the €5.8 billion project. The two-day bootcamp, jointly hosted by Rail Baltica and Riga Technical University, marks the latest step in the Baltic states’ push to integrate cutting-edge digital tools into the continent’s most ambitious rail corridor since the fall of the Iron Curtain.

On the same day, Rail Baltica and voestalpine Railway Systems celebrated the symbolic start of turnout production at the Austrian manufacturer’s facility in Valčiūnai, Lithuania. The first switches for the 870-kilometre high-speed line are now rolling off the production line, fulfilling a critical milestone ahead of the 2028 operational launch of the mainline between Tallinn, Riga and Kaunas. “Today we turn design into steel,” said a Rail Baltica spokesperson. “These turnouts are the joints that will connect the entire network.”

Meanwhile, 300 kilometres north, construction crews in Tallinn broke ground on a €9.8 million Rail Baltica spur linking Ülemiste and Lasnamäe, the first physical segment to be built in Estonia. The contract, signed on Saturday between Rail Baltic Estonia, the City of Tallinn and LEONHARD WEISS OÜ, signals the transition from planning to on-the-ground delivery in the smallest of the three Baltic capitals.

The flurry of activity comes as Riga’s skyline prepares to welcome a new premium waterfront district. On Wednesday, developer Pro Kapital embedded a time capsule at the €23 million Blue Marine Residence site in the Klīversala district, marking the official start of construction for 120 luxury apartments and marina facilities. The project, one of the largest private investments in Latvia this year, underscores the broader urban renewal Rippling across the Baltic capitals as Rail Baltica reshapes real-estate dynamics.

Technical collaboration is extending beyond the Baltics. Last week, Rail Baltica hosted a delegation from Port Polska for a workshop in Vilnius focused on high-speed rail infrastructure standards, signalling potential future interoperability with Poland’s expanding network. The exchanges follow earlier talks with German and Scandinavian rail authorities, as Rail Baltica positions itself as a key node in Europe’s emerging north-south freight and passenger corridor.

With turnout production underway, Estonia’s first track segment breaking ground and Riga’s luxury waterfront rising, the Baltic rail revolution is no longer theoretical. By 2028, the first high-speed trains will roll from the Gulf of Finland to the heart of Central Europe, binding the Baltics closer to the EU’s core—and to each other.

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Construction begins on new Rail Baltica link between Ülemiste and Lasnamäe in Tallinn - The Baltic Times Rail Baltic Estonia, the City of Tallinn, and construction company LEONHARD WEISS OÜ have signed a €9.8 million contract for t......