Rail Baltica is a railway infrastructure megaproject that spans across several countries. The depth of skills and expertise required to successfully execute a greenfield project of this caliber is extensive and would not be possible without our diverse team of professionals.
Welcome back to our series, “Rail Baltica: The People Behind the Vision,” where we introduce you to the members of the Rail Baltica global project team. These individuals are the driving force advancing the Rail Baltica project with their professionalism, dedication, and passion for this project.
Jānis Freimanis, Project manager, Rail Baltica Project Implementation and Management Division, Eiropas Dzelzceļa līnijas
This week, we are pleased to introduce Jānis Freimanis, Project Manager at Eiropas Dzelzceļa līnijas. Jānis joined the Rail Baltica project in 2017, driven by a long-standing passion for infrastructure megaprojects – shaped by family stories and hands-on experience in a major U.S. railway hub.
Over the years, his role has evolved from Technical Expert to Project Manager, contributing to key areas like BIM, procurement, system engineering, and project governance. In July 2025, he will step into a new role as Program Governance Manager, focusing on improving oversight across the project.
For Jānis, Rail Baltica is a once-in-a-generation opportunity for the Baltics. He highlights the importance of learning from challenges and working as a strong, unified team. Among his proudest achievements is helping deliver the Riga Central Station project – on time and within budget – in one of the project’s most complex urban environments.
When did you join the Rail Baltica project and what inspired you to become a part of the team?
Infrastructure megaprojects have always fascinated me. It was various stories I had read about as well as heard from my uncle who as an expatriate engineer and had experienced AEC projects worldwide. Thus holding already some inspiration I knew quite early that sooner or later I would also try in real life the taste of it. But it was obvious that there are no such projects happening in Baltics. So I used an opportunity through Baltic – American Freedom Foundation (BAFF) to spend a year in a railway hub megaproject in USA as part of the project team. In the meantime there was emerging something very relevant back at home – Rail Baltica. So by that time it was fully clear further I would one way or another join the Rail Baltica project, which I did upon my return to LV by end of 2017.
How has your role evolved since you first joined the Rail Baltica project, and what have you learned along the way?
It has been quite diverse experience through these years. Initially I was Technical Expert with emphasis on BIM matters, later Senior Technical Expert. During that time somehow naturally I got involved more and more in Rail Baltica Riga Central Station (RCS) project and it transitioned into filling duties of what more widely is recognized as Project Engineer. Also, at some point I spent a year as an Acting Project Manager of the RCS project. Later position changed permanently to a Project Manager but related to other projects and tasks. Somewhere along the way I got involved occasionally also in Project Controls, public procurement processes and disputes, System Engineering and Assurance topics, EDMS implementation, solving of internal organizational matters and various other horizontal things. This is already my eighth year here, and by July 2025, I will be moving into a new role as Program Governance Manager – aiming to bring together my experience to help improve existing governance. Much has been learned across disciplines, and much remains to be learned – but the most important insight is that even all the world’s knowledge cannot ensure project success without a strong team around you.
What do you believe is the most challenging aspect of this mega project?
Mistakes happen over the course of any complex endeavour. It may be challenging to admit them and learn from them, and administratively difficult to adjust the strategies and move forward smarter and more efficiently. In Rail Baltica, inefficiency may have high stakes. Therefore, continuous improvement and learning from mistakes is often seen as a major challenge in Rail Baltica – both from a human and administrative perspective.
Also, a related challenge is the project’s governance system and the amounts of leadership it requires. Which is on top of the already extraordinary default levels of leadership required by megaprojects in general. It applies at all levels, but the joint, continuous involvement of the three Beneficiaries – the governments of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania – at the highest leadership level is paramount for this project. From my recent observations I like to believe this is a lesson already learned and taken on board at Rail Baltica Global Project and 3B level.
What advice would you give to a newcomer joining the Rail Baltica project team?
Do not be afraid – embrace the complexity. In this project, it is guaranteed in every field, whether it is engineering, finance, or something else. And that is a good thing – it brings new knowledge, valuable experience, and even a bit of fun.
What would you say is the achievement you are most proud of?
My family. But in terms of work at EDZL, it is being part of the Client, Contractor, and Engineer team that truly delivered what we were tasked to build in Riga – the most technically and organizationally complex urban environment in the entire Rail Baltica project. Let the political debates about whether it was needed or should continue stay with the politicians. We did our part – we delivered what was asked of us, on time and within budget. And for that, I am genuinely proud to have been part of such a delivery team.