Rail Baltic signs €9.8 million tunnel contract in Tallinn

Rail Baltic Estonia and construction company Leonhard Weiss OÜ signed a contract on Monday for the construction of the Kantsi tunnel in Tallinn, which will connect the Lasnamäe and Ülemiste districts beneath the railway. The contract is worth approximately €9.83 million and the tunnel is scheduled for completion by 31 October 2027.

Rail Baltic Estonia and construction company Leonhard Weiss OÜ signed a €9,826,169 contract on Monday, 15 June 2026 in Tallinn for the construction of the Kantsi tunnel, which will connect Lasnamäe and the Ülemiste district beneath the railway.

Why the tunnel is needed

Currently, access to the Ülemiste area is primarily via Tartu Road, with the nearest railway crossing located more than three kilometres away on Smuuli Street. At the location where the future tunnel will be built, the railway can currently only be crossed by pedestrian bridge.

The completion of the Kantsi tunnel will create a new connection between Petersburg Road and Suur-Sõjamäe Street, improving mobility for pedestrians, cyclists, public transport users and drivers alike. It is also expected to relieve current congestion at the intersection of Tartu Road, Järvevana Road and Suur-Sõjamäe Street.

Leaders see the project as important

Anvar Salomets, Chairman of the Board of Rail Baltic Estonia, emphasised the tunnel's broader impact: "The Kantsi tunnel is much more than just a passage under the railway. It is part of a larger whole that transforms the Ülemiste area into a more important international mobility hub for Estonia. Rail Baltic not only connects us to Europe, but also helps better link different regions of Estonia and Tallinn, and creates the conditions for new investments and job creation."

Kadi Pärnits, Chairman of the Board of AS Mainor, which is involved in the development of the Ülemiste district, added that the lengthy preparation process for the tunnel has finally come to an end: "This will make pedestrian, public transport and vehicle traffic smoother and is a very important solution for alleviating congestion at the intersection of Tartu Road, Järvevana Road and Suur-Sõjamäe Street."

What will be built under the contract

Under the contract, in addition to the Kantsi tunnel, a new passenger waiting platform will be built together with access roads and the rail infrastructure foundation for Rail Baltic's European standard gauge railway at Ülemiste station, including earthworks, drainage systems and necessary utilities. The first phase of the Ülemiste station area foundation and Kantsi tunnel is scheduled for completion by 31 October 2027.

Aleksei Dohin, Procurist and Director of the Civil Engineering Division at contractor Leonhard Weiss OÜ, said the contract marks an important milestone in the development of both Rail Baltic and Estonia's railway infrastructure, improving regional connectivity and safety.

Leonhard Weiss has previously participated in the Rail Baltic project in the construction of several infrastructure sections in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, including the construction of the Ülemiste light traffic tunnel, the expansion of Riga Central Station railway infrastructure and the construction of the Lithuania-Žeimiai railway section.

Tallinn City Council approved the construction of the Kantsi tunnel under the Rail Baltic railway route in May 2025.