In Estonia, the Rail Baltica route corridor was established in three counties through which the railway passes, in accordance with county plans.
– The planning process began in 2013, one year after the Government of the Republic issued its 2012 order.
– The county governors of Harju, Rapla, and Pärnu counties adopted the Rail Baltica county plans in 2016.
– The Minister of Public Administration approved the county plans in February 2018.
The plans established a 350-meter-wide route corridor for the railway and related infrastructure (service roads, access roads to plots, crossings and passages, eco-ducts, etc.). The 350-meter route corridor also includes a displacement area, while the actual land requirement for the railway is66 meters. The so-called displacement requirement in relation to the route corridor axis defined in the plans was determined during the preliminary design process completed in October 2018.
The last public exhibitions of Rail Baltica plans took place in Harju and Rapla counties in July-August 2016, and in Pärnu county in November-December. Five public discussions were held in Harju County in connection with the plans – in addition to the county-wide discussion, meetings were also held in Maardu, Rae, Kiili, and Saku. A county-wide discussion was also held in Rapla, as well as discussions in Raikküla, Järvakandi, Kohila, and Kehtna. Eight public discussions were held in Pärnu County in January 2017.
A total of 86 public discussions were held as part of the planning and environmental impact assessment process, with more than 4,000 participants!
Explore the route of Rail Baltica in Estoniausing the GIS map application.
Definitions
Route corridor– the railway route corridor designated in county plans is the land required for the construction of the railway and the railway protection zone, together with the route's "shifting space." In sparsely populated areas, the route corridor is 350 m wide. In Tallinn, Pärnu, and larger populated areas where the route corridor runs along an existing railway line (in an established built environment), the width of the corridor is 150 m.
The planned railway land with a protective zone, which is generally 66 m wide and is approximately fenced off from the 35 m line, is located within the route corridor.
Railway land– land under railways and railway infrastructure buildings and structures and land necessary for their maintenance (lines, slopes, maintenance roads, noise barriers, etc.). The extent of railway land, including the buffer zone, is generally 66 m, but may be wider in the case of special railway solutions (at stations, signal boxes, additional tracks).
Margin of error– (142 m in sparsely populated areas and 42 m in larger settlements) is necessary to allow for necessary adjustments during the design process. It is not possible to take into account all the details necessary for design when compiling county plans, due to the approach inherent in regional planning and the high level of generalization of the maps being compiled.
Railway protection zone– an area designated for ensuring the intended operation of the railway and uninterrupted railway traffic, and for reducing the harmful effects of the railway. The width of the protection zone is calculated from the centerline of the track (in the case of multiple tracks and stations, from the centerline of the outermost track) as 30 m (in accordance with the draft Railway Act). According to the current legislation, the width of the protective zone is 30 m in cities and towns and 50 m outside cities and towns.
Within the railway protection zone (outside the fenced area), the construction of buildings and structures, the storage and installation of equipment and materials that jeopardize visibility in the protection zone may only take place may only take place with the prior written consent of the Technical Regulatory Authority and the relevant railway infrastructure operator or other owner or possessor of the railway.
