Continuing the construction of the new substation in Mežaparks, Rīgas satiksme places a time capsule in its foundations
Continuing the construction of the new substation in Mežaparks, a time capsule with a message and memorabilia about our present was placed in its foundations on 3 December.
Vilnis Ķirsis, Chairman of the Riga City Council: “We are making Riga’s public transport the backbone of the capital’s traffic, and the tram is the backbone of the public transport system, so this investment in the new substation is very important. It is an investment in a stable, safe and comfortable tram service for every passenger, and here in Mežaparks it is also the story of a beautiful and fond tradition that we all know – the line 11, or the Song Celebration Tram, as we use to call it in the years when the Song and Dance Celebration takes place. May the new substation be completed in time for the Latvian School Youth Song and Dance Celebration in the summer of 2025.”
Olafs Pulks, Chairman of the Traffic and Transport Committee of Riga City Council: “Over the last four years, Rīgas satiksme has invested more than EUR 60 million in public transport and city infrastructure development, of which EUR 40 million is EU funding – this shows that we are consistently meeting our commitment to continuously improve Riga’s public transport system. For passengers to choose public transport as their primary means of transport, the system must be comfortable, accessible and well-functioning, and the construction of a new substation is a long awaited long-term investment. I am also pleased with the architectural solution, which will allow this technical structure to blend perfectly into the landscape of Mežaparks and will be in line with the concept of this part of the city as a recreational area.”
Chairwoman of the Board of Rīgas satiksme, Džineta Innusa: “The mobile substation was built in 1950 and has been in operation ever since. Now, in its place, a new, modern and up-to-date substation is being built in Mežaparks. Moreover, this is the second substation to be built anew in the last 35 years. Today, we have laid a time capsule with a message, various technical materials, the latest internal newspaper “Rīgas satiksmes darbinieks” and other things that will tell our future colleagues about our present. At the same time, there is still a lot of work to be done – the renovation and modernisation of substations will continue into the future. Of our 35 traction substations, 11 have been renovated, while work is still ongoing at three substations and another 21 are awaiting renovation.”
Member of the Board of Rīgas satiksme, Jānis Golubevs: “Traction substations for electric transport are particularly important infrastructure assets. They are where electricity is transformed, distributed and delivered overhead contact line. The substation is, in a sense, the heart of trams and trolleybuses, ensuring that they can run successfully every day. The new substation will be equipped with technology that will allow dispatchers to work more quickly by monitoring the substation online and will be safer to operate.”
A mobile substation was built at the Tram and Trolleybus Trust in 1950. Its electrical schematics were designed by electrical engineer Voldemārs Vārna. The substation was installed on a tram trolley to allow the modernisation of the company’s traction substations without interruption of operation, for example by replacing old rectifiers with newer ones. This mobile substation temporarily took over the functions of the disconnected substations, ensuring that the trams ran uninterrupted.
In the 1960s, the mobile substation was located at the terminus of the tram route in Jugla, after reconstruction in 1980 at the II Meža Cemetery in Čiekurkalns, and in 1995, after some modernisation, it was moved to the terminus of tram route 11 in Mežaparks.
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