Lithuanian railway passenger numbers rise as freight volumes decline

In the first half of 2026, the Lithuanian railway market experienced diverging trends: passenger transport volumes increased while freight transport volumes declined. According to the Communications Regulatory Authority (RRT), 3 million passengers traveled by rail, an 11.2% increase compared to the same period last year. Passenger revenue rose by 9.3% to 55.4 million euros.

This growth in passenger numbers may have been driven by a state decision to compensate 50% of train ticket prices for two months. Consequently, the need for state compensation for passenger transport rose by 16% to 22.2 million euros. The vast majority of trips (91%) were on local routes, with 88.6% of passengers traveling under state-ordered public service contracts.

In contrast, freight transport volumes fell by 4.9% to 2.6 billion net ton-kilometers. International transport volumes dropped by 18.2%, and transit volumes fell by 15.6%. Despite the decrease in volume, freight revenue increased by 6.6% to 134.8 million euros, with average revenue per net ton-kilometer rising by approximately 12%.

RRT Chairwoman Jūratė Šovienė noted that these conflicting trends suggest a need to evaluate whether current infrastructure charging and passenger transport financing models are sustainable and encourage efficient use of railway infrastructure.