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Traffic in Latvia

Transport and infrastructure in Latvia

Our listing of the primary types of transport compares the infrastructure of Latvia with the average of all countries in Europe. Overall, the main traffic and transport routes are well developed and in comparatively good condition.

In terms of the length of its rail network, Latvia ranks 8th in the world with 0.99 meters per inhabitant. In total, the rail network is 1,860 kilometers long. Freight traffic on the rails most recently totaled 7.37 billion tons and kilometers traveled. Passenger traffic reached 360.80 million passenger-kilometers in 2021.

The waterways listed refer to inland traffic on rivers and canals. The number of ports includes those located on the 498 km of coastline. In 2020, about 462,000 freight containers were transported.

Airports in Latvia


Back to overview: Latvia

Road traffic

The network of roads and highways has a total length of 70,244 km. For each of the country's 1.88 million inhabitants, this corresponds to 37.27 meters. This puts Latvia in 10th place in the global ranking. However, it is also important to note that the country's population density is very low at around 29 inhabitants per km². In this case, disproportionately long distances generally have to be covered to reach the more remote parts of the country.

With an average of 189 traffic fatalities per year (2013 - 2019), road traffic in Latvia is considered relatively safe. This corresponds to 9.7 accident fatalities per 100,000 inhabitants per year. By comparison, this figure is 12.3 in the USA and 17.0 worldwide.

Traffic in LatviaIn Latvia, traffic drives on the right-hand side of the road, i.e. people drive in the right-hand lane and overtake on the left. Oncoming traffic comes toward you on the left side. This rule was introduced at the end of the 18th century during the Napoleonic Wars. Here you can also find an overview of all countries with left-hand traffic.


 

Latvia

 totalper 1 mio
inhabitants
per km²
Roadways70,200 km37,274.81 km1,089.22 m
Railroads1,900 km987.00 km28.84 m
Waterways300 km159.19 km4.65 m
Commercial harbors7037.150.001
Airports31.590.047
 

Europe

 total per 1 mio
inhabitants
per km²
Roadways6,708,900 km11,154.38 km1,111.71 m
Railroads258,600 km429.97 km42.85 m
Waterways54,800 km91.17 km9.09 m
Commercial harbors15,27325.390.003
Airports5730.950.000


Data sources used

Global Health Observatory Data Repository (World Health Organization)
UNCTAD
Internation Union of Railways (UIC)
CIA Factbook
OECD Statistics
Wikipedia (german)
Latvia: AirportsLargest airports and airlines in LatviaThe 3 biggest airports and in Latvia with further information and data with further information on airlines and destinations
Latvia: ClimateClimate and temperature development in LatviaA climate analysis for Latvia incl. temperatures, humidity, rain days per month, hours of sunshine, rainfalls
Ranking: MegacitiesMega cities - the biggest cities all over the worldRanking of the biggest cities worldwide. On top: Shanghai, Chongqing and Beijing