The European Commission has awarded Centralny Port Komunikacyjny (CPK) funding of approximately 290m zlotys (€64m) for the planning of the construction project for the high-speed railway (HSR) line between Warsaw and Łódź.

The funded project comes under the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF), the funding instrument set to support European transport infrastructure policy.

CPK have stated the total project estimated cost is roughly 350m zlotys (€78m) with 85% of this (€64m) being funded by the EU.

According to the design speeds, trains travelling along this line will be able to operate at a maximum speed of 250km/h in the initial phase and up to 350km/h in the future.

Marcin Horała, deputy minister of funds and regional policy emphasises HSR’s strategic placing within the TEN-T network: “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.”

According to CPK, the introduction of the HSR will reduce travel time between Warsaw and Łódź by more than half and commuters will reach the CPK airport from Warsaw in 15 minutes.

The HSR between Warsaw and Łódź is an extension of the TEN-T network policy, under the North Sea-Baltic corridor, which is aimed to be completed by 2030.

This grant extends relationships between CPK and the CEF, as Poland previously obtained funding of 110m zlotys from CEF for the construction project of the CPK’s long-distance HSR tunnel in Łódź.

Additionally, this project aligns with the European Commission’s sustainable and smart mobility strategy, which supports a fully operational, multimodal Trans-European Transport Network by 2050.