On 26 August 2021, Budimex S.A. signed a contract with PKP Polskie Linie Kolejowe S.A. for nearly PLN 587 million net for the modernisation of Ełk Railway Station. Investments in Ełk are the first stage of works on the section Białystok – Ełk within the framework of the project “Works on E 75 line on the section Białystok – Suwałki – Trakiszki (state border), stage I section Białystok – Ełk.” The project for nearly PLN 587 million net is co-financed from the EU funds of the CEF (Connecting Europe Facility) instrument.
The order execution period is 28 months. The warranty period is 5 years. After Czechowice Dziedzice and Warszawa Zachodnia stations, the Ełk node is another one executed by Budimex S.A. This year, Budimex completed the modernisation of the Warsaw – Lublin railway line. In addition to these investments, the company is also executing railway contracts in Gdynia and on the E30 and E59 lines in the Silesia and Greater Poland Voivodeships.
"I hope that the general contractor will rise to the expectations, as was the case in recent years, and complete this investment according to schedule. I also hope that once the politicians have done their job, organised the finances and prepared the projects, the engineers will take matters into their own hands and no obstacles will stand in the way of the investment plans and that in 2023 we will already be able to use the new Ełk passenger station", says Andrzej Adamczyk, the Minister of Infrastructure during the signing of the agreement.
"Ełk Station is the heart of this section. Work will begin in the next three months. I hope that Budimex will cope with what it implements on many construction sites in the country." – Ireneusz Merchel, President of PKP PLK, said during the signing of the contract.
Construction work will commence after the investor obtains a building permit and completes the works phasing project. The schedule of works states that this will happen in about 3 months. At the moment, the general contractor is preparing the construction site and ordering materials.
The scope of the investment includes:
In terms of engineering structures, the construction is planned for:
Brief characteristics of the engineering structures in question:
The aim of the undertaking is to modernise four railway lines, i.e. LK38, LK41, LK219, LK223 within Ełk Station, Ełk Towarowy Station and Ełk Szyba Wschód passenger stop.
The main objectives of the project “Works at Ełk Station” (“Prace na stacji Ełk”) include:
Ełk has the largest node station in Masuria, where lines to Bialystok (extended to Brześć, electrified in 1990), Korsz and further to Bartoszyce, Gołdap, Olsztyn and Czerwonka intersect. Direct trains run from Ełk to Olsztyn, Białystok, Toruń, Poznan, Wroclaw, Gdansk, Szczecin, Gdynia, Warsaw and Lodz.