First Meeting of the Project Consortium for the Solidarity Lanes EU-UA Road Project

A Few Words of Introduction – What are “Solidarity Lanes”?

Solidarity Lanes is a program initiated by the European Commission (European Climate, Infrastructure, and Environment Executive Agency – CINEA) in May 2022. Its goal is to optimize and modernize traffic flows in terms of infrastructure, capacity, interoperability, and service efficiency at major border crossings between the European Union (EU) and Ukraine. This initiative was developed in response to the increasing transport and logistics needs stemming from the geopolitical challenges related to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. It aims to enhance capacity, interoperability, and transport service efficiency along the EU-Ukraine border.

As part of the Solidarity Lanes, CINEA is implementing various infrastructure projects, two of which are carried out with Polish and Ukrainian partners. These projects are funded through grant agreements signed by CINEA, the Center for EU Transport Projects (CEUTP), and partners from Poland and Ukraine. Both projects began in 2023 and are set to conclude in 2027. CEUTP coordinates these initiatives, ensuring the monitoring of work progress and the achievement of set milestones in consultation with the Ministry of Funds and Regional Policy, which acts as the Managing Authority for the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF 2) 2021-2027 in Poland.

Read More: EU-UA Solidarity Lanes

Road project EU-UA “Solidarity Lanes”

The meeting, which took place in Lublin on 28 and 29 January 2025, dealt specifically with the road project “EU-UA Solidarity Lanes” (project number 101122932). This project consists of optimising and modernising transport flows in terms of infrastructure capacity, interoperability and service efficiency at the main PL/UA border crossings.

Some background information on the project:

Grant Agreement Signing Date: October 16, 2023

Project Number per Grant Agreement: 101122932

Project Acronym per Grant Agreement: 22-EU-TG-PL-UA roads BCPs

Project Start Date per Grant Agreement: March 1, 2023

Project End Date per Grant Agreement: May 31, 2027

Eligible Project Costs per Grant Agreement: EUR 124,644,569.00

Maximum EU Funding: EUR 62 322 284.50

Project coordinated by CUPT and implemented by a Polish-Ukrainian consortium consisting of: General Directorate of National Roads and Motorways (GDDKiA), National Revenue Administration (KAS), Lublin Executive Board of Border Crossings (LZOPG) and the State Agency for Restoration and Development of Infrastructure of Ukraine (AgencyUA).

What was the meeting about?

The two-day meeting included several different thematic sessions led by experts from CUPT. All discussions took place with the active participation of participants, including representatives from the Department of Transport Strategy at the Ministry of Infrastructure (MI) and the Department of Infrastructure Programmes at the Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy (MFiPR).

On the first day, each of the Beneficiaries gave presentations on the details of the project and its progress, and representatives of the MI and MFiPR presented the genesis of the “Solidarity Lanes” programme initiated by the European Commission, as well as general information and statistics on the implementation of investments with funding from the CEF Connecting Europe Facility. The second day focused on issues related to project reporting and audits.

What activities will be implemented as part of the project?

The main objective of the project is to create and optimise the so-called Solidarity Lanes between the EU and Ukraine. The project is implemented through activities such as: construction works for the S12 expressway – a component implemented by the General Directorate of National Roads and Motorways (GDDKiA), design works for the clearance terminal in Okopy – a component implemented by the Lublin Executive Board of Border Crossings, and modern IT solutions (i.e. a dedicated border clearance application) – a component implemented by the National Revenue Administration. Within the framework of the project, the activities undertaken by the Ukrainian partners concern in particular the road infrastructure linked to the border crossings: Yagodyn/Dorohusk, Rava Ruska/Hrebenne and Krakovets/Korchova. These border crossings in question are the main links on the PL(EU)-UA border.

The project is implemented through work, research and the most advanced IT solutions in order to create an environmentally friendly cross-border road link within the TEN-T comprehensive road network. As a consequence, it is expected to provide an increase in the capacity of border crossings and facilitate traffic flow for different modes of transport.

The project is in line with the objectives and priorities set out under the Connecting Europe Facility, from which it receives funding.

We will report on the progress of the project through the news channels of the Centre for EU Transport Projects.