STOCKHOLM, June 2 (Xinhua) -- The Swedish government announced on Saturday that it will invest 3.8 billion SEK (430 million U.S. dollars) in a new railway track between the western cities of Gothenburg and Boras, the money that has been described as essential for the realization of a high-speed railway in Sweden.
The plan is to start building new high-speed railway tracks in Sweden in 2024 and they are expected to be completed by 2029.
"This is important news for western Sweden but also for the whole country," Minister for Infrastructure Tomas Eneroth of the Social Democrat Party told Swedish news agency TT. "Everybody knows that the tracks are crowded and that we need to increase capacity on them. That is one of the reasons why we want new main railway lines -- so that we can fit in more commuter trains and cargo trains."
The planned Gothenburg-Boras railway track - Sweden's busiest commuter route - is part of a national infrastructure plan and the total cost for the line is estimated to be 30 billion SEK, Swedish Television reported on Saturday.
Eneroth said the new government funding should form an important starting point for further discussions around financing.
The government also announced a new investment of 1.25 billion SEK in a national plan to increase the capacity of harbors to receive larger ships. Gothenburg's harbor is part of that national plan.
"We are beginning to build a part of a sustainable transport system. It is crucial that we do so," said Minister for the Environment Karolina Skog of the Green Party. (1 U.S. dollar = 8.83 SEK)?
