The European Commission has granted Centralny Port Komunikacyjny (CPK) almost €64 million from the CEF Connecting Europe Facility to support the development of the high-speed railway line between Warsaw and Łódź. This strategic project aims to improve transport links and cut travel time between the two cities in half. The funding will primarily be used for the preparation of the construction project, including the development of design documentation for two key sections of the line.
The funded project focuses on two major sections: the section from Warsaw West to the planned CPK transport hub and the section from the junction with railway line No 11 to the Łódź Niciarniana railway station. The EU funding covers approximately 85% of the project's estimated value of PLN 350 million, underlining the European Union's commitment to supporting vital transport infrastructure.
“The CPK airport, together with the new HSR line between Warsaw and Łódź, is an important part of the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T), the EU's strategic transport infrastructure. It is very good news that the European Commission has consistently kept it on the list of its priorities to be co-funded from Community funds,” said Deputy Minister of Funds and Regional Policy Marcin Horała, Government Plenipotentiary for CPK. Mikołaj Wild, CEO of CPK, highlighted the importance of the Warsaw-Łódź section for the overall CPK railway system, providing access to the new airport and serving as Poland's main transfer station.
The Warsaw-Łódź section is part of railway line No. 85, known as "spoke" No. 9, and together with the sections from Łódź to Wrocław and Poznań, it forms the HSR line "Y." In the initial stage, trains on this route will operate at speeds of up to 250 km/h, with a future design speed of 350 km/h. Once the project is completed, the travel time between Warsaw and Łódź will be reduced to approximately 45 minutes. In addition, CPK Airport will be easily accessible, with a travel time of approximately 15 minutes from Warsaw and half an hour from Łódź.
