The funds for structural change are to be used to launch four new railway projects in Lusatia. These include the expansion of Eisenhüttenstadt station, Bischdorf station, Cottbus station and the electrification of the railway line between Guben and Zielona Góra in Poland, according to a statement from the Brandenburg State Chancellery. The joint decision with the federal government will release investment funds of over 750 million euros.
The money will not only go towards new projects. Existing projects will also receive a portion of the announced funds, according to a spokeswoman for the State Chancellery. The money will be used, among other things, to further advance the expansion of the route between Lübbenau and Cottbus and the route between Cottbus and Forst.
It is important that projects that have already begun are fully financed, said Brandenburg’s Transport Minister Rainer Genilke (CDU). “I am pleased that, for example, additional funds have been released for the double-track expansion of the Lübbenau – Cottbus route over a length of 29 kilometers.” This will remove a bottleneck that has slowed down rail traffic in the region for decades, added the minister.
The Coal Regions Investment Act has been in force since August 2020 and provides for a total of structural funding of up to around 41 billion euros by 2038. The state of Brandenburg will receive a total of just over ten billion euros of this. According to the State Chancellery, the funds will be used to manage structural change and secure employment in the course of phasing out lignite mining and power generation.
© dpa-infocom, dpa:240920-930-238399/1
This is a message directly from the dpa news channel.
