Rail freight numbers down

RIGA - Volumes of freight carried by rail in Latvia fell by 10.6 percent in the first seven months of 2010, with a total tonnage of 29.1 million tons carried; however, there was a significant increase in internal traffic, according to information provided by the Transport Ministry, reports Nozare.lv. The internal freight transportation situation has changed significantly. While in the first six months of the year the volume of internal traffic fell 40 percent year-on-year, to 303,900 tons, in just one month the figure doubled, and now stands at 667,400 tons for the first seven months of the year, representing a fall of just 4.4 percent year-on-year.

International freight traffic has decreased by 10.8 percent, with a total figure of 28.4 million tons. According to the statistics, rail transit freight transported through the country’s ports has fallen by 13.3 percent, to 23.8 million tons.
The largest rail freight carrier in Latvia is LDz Cargo, subsidiary of national rail company Latvijas Dzelcels.
Lithuanian rail company Lietuvos gelezinkeliai transported 26.7 million tons of freight in the first seven months of this year, an increase of 14.7 percent year-on-year.