Ministry of Transport and Communications () is a government institution in the

Republic of Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

which coordinates the work of road, rail, air, water, transport, postal and electronic communications sector and implements the strategy and politics of state government.

History

The Ministry of Transport and Communications of Lithuania was first established on 11 November 1918 and it operated until the

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The ministry was first temporarily headed by the then Minister of Finance Martynas Yčas (1885–1941). When Lithuania regained its independence the new Government was formed on 22 March 1990, and the Ministry of Transport and Communications was re-established as well. The objectives of the Ministry include the creation of new transport strategy and legal system as well as deepening the integration of the Lithuanian transport sector into the European transport network.

Ministers

The Minister of Transport and Communications () is a member of the

executive branch The executive branch is the part of government which executes or enforces the law. Function The scope of executive power varies greatly depending on the political context in which it emerges, and it can change over time in a given country. In ...

of the

Government of Lithuania The Government of Lithuania, officially the Government of the Republic of Lithuania (GRL), is the Cabinet (government), cabinet of and exercising executive power in Lithuania. Among other responsibilities, it executes laws and resolutions of the ...

. The current incumbent is Eugenijus Sabutis who took office on 12 December 2024. The Minister of Transport and Communications of Lithuania is responsible for overseeing the development, maintenance, and

efficiency Efficiency is the often measurable ability to avoid making mistakes or wasting materials, energy, efforts, money, and time while performing a task. In a more general sense, it is the ability to do things well, successfully, and without waste. ...

of the country’s

transportation infrastructure Transport (in British English) or transportation (in American English) is the intentional movement of humans, animals, and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land ( rail and road), water, cable, pipelines, ...

, including

road A road is a thoroughfare used primarily for movement of traffic. Roads differ from streets, whose primary use is local access. They also differ from stroads, which combine the features of streets and roads. Most modern roads are paved. Th ...

rail Rail or rails may refer to: Rail transport *Rail transport and related matters *Railway track or railway lines, the running surface of a railway Arts and media Film * ''Rails'' (film), a 1929 Italian film by Mario Camerini * ''Rail'' (1967 fil ...

air An atmosphere () is a layer of gases that envelop an astronomical object, held in place by the gravity of the object. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A stellar atmosph ...

, and maritime systems. This role involves formulating policies that regulate transportation, enhance mobility, and promote environmental sustainability. The Minister also leads efforts to advance digital communication networks and telecommunications services, ensuring the country is equipped with modern and accessible digital infrastructure. Additionally, the Minister is tasked with ensuring the safety of transportation networks, implementing safety regulations, and responding to any transport-related incidents. The Minister represents

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

in international transport matters, fostering cooperation with other countries and organizations, and coordinates cross-border infrastructure projects. Furthermore, the Minister plays a key role in drafting

legislation Legislation is the process or result of enrolling, enacting, or promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous governing body. Before an item of legislation becomes law it may be known as a bill, and may be broadly referred ...

and

regulation Regulation is the management of complex systems according to a set of rules and trends. In systems theory, these types of rules exist in various fields of biology and society, but the term has slightly different meanings according to context. Fo ...

s related to transport and communication sectors, aligning them with both national and

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

standards. Finally, the Minister supports initiatives aimed at improving public transportation and alternative mobility solutions, contributing to reduced congestion and increased accessibility.

Role and responsibilities

The Ministry seeks: * to fulfil the requirements of European Union legislation in the areas of transport, post and electronic communications; * to modernize the transport infrastructure; * to integrate the main highways of the country into the trans-European networks; * to enable the development of transport business, transparent competition; * to improve transport and communication service quality; * to promote

multimodal transport Multimodal transport (also known as combined transport) is the transportation of goods under a single contract, but performed with at least two different modes of transport; the carrier is liable (in a legal sense) for the entire carriage, even t ...

, logistics centers, public setting; * to coordinate activities in the areas of transport, post and electronic communications; * to take part in the development of the traffic safety policy for all modes of transport; * to take part in the development of the policy on the reduction of negative environmental impacts of transport areas.

The most important transport and communication infrastructure development projects

Rail Baltica Rail Baltica is an under-construction rail infrastructure project that is intended to integrate the Baltic states in the European rail network. Its purpose is to provide passenger and freight service between participating countries and improve ra ...

is one of the priority projects of the European Union

Trans-European Transport Networks The Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) is a planned network of roads, railways, airports and water infrastructure in the European Union. The TEN-T network is part of a wider system of Trans-European Networks (TENs), including a telecommun ...

(TEN-T).European gauge railway is going to link

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

and

Tallinn Tallinn is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Estonia, most populous city of Estonia. Situated on a Tallinn Bay, bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, it has a population of (as of 2025) and ...

Riga Riga ( ) is the capital, Primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Latvia, largest city of Latvia. Home to 591,882 inhabitants (as of 2025), the city accounts for a third of Latvia's total population. The population of Riga Planni ...

Kaunas Kaunas (; ) is the second-largest city in Lithuania after Vilnius, the fourth largest List of cities in the Baltic states by population, city in the Baltic States and an important centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaun ...

and

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

. The project is funded by the European Union's

TEN-T The Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) is a planned network of roads, railways, airports and water infrastructure in the European Union. The TEN-T network is part of a wider system of Trans-European Networks (TENs), including a telecommun ...

, the

Cohesion Fund The Cohesion Fund, one of the five European Structural and Investment Funds of the European Union, provides support to Member States with a gross national income per capita below 90% EU-27 average to strengthen the economic, social and territorial ...

and the Lithuanian State, started in 2010.

Via Baltica European route E 67 is an E-road running from Prague in the Czech Republic to Estonia and by ferry to Finland. It goes via Prague, Wrocław, Warsaw, Kaunas, Panevėžys, Riga, Tallinn, Helsinki. The route is known as the Via Baltica ...

is known as a part of the European route E67 between Warsaw and Tallinn. International Via Baltica project is helping to create better traffic conditions between the Central, Western Europe and Baltic countries. RAIN – the project of developing the broadband Internet in all rural areas of the country. This project will be completed in 2013. The project goal is to provide broadband access to all rural districts of public administrations, hospitals, laboratories, schools, museums, libraries, public Internet access points. MEZON 4G Internet, acting on the basis of advanced wireless technologies, providing extremely high speed (download speed - up to 10 Mbit/s). MEZON Internet operates in 53 cities and towns, it is available for about 60 percent of Lithuania's population. It is planned next year to allow MEZON mobile Internet access across the densely populated territory of Lithuania. Dredging of Klaipėda state sea port basin, construction and reconstruction of embankments (2004–2010), improving facilities of freight and passenger service. Reconstruction of Sventoji Port. Started in 2010. The port is going to maintain recreational, small, sport, fishing boats, small sea cruise and passenger ships. Construction of deep-water port in Klaipėda (planned). Reconstruction of Jakai roundabout (2010, completed the first stage of reconstruction). 4-lane overhead road is linking

and

Klaipėda Klaipėda ( ; ) is a city in Lithuania on the Baltic Sea coast. It is the List of cities in Lithuania, third-largest city in Lithuania, the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, fifth-largest city in the Baltic States, and the capi ...

directions. Reconstruction of Railway tunnel in Kaunas (2008) Modernization of Kena border railway statio (2008)

Institutions under the Ministry of Transport and Communications

* State Road Transport Inspectorate * State Railway Inspectorate * Lithuanian Road Administration * Directorate of border crossing infrastructure * Information Society Development Committee

Institutions and Enterprises under the regulation of the Ministry

Vilnius International Airport Vilnius Čiurlionis International Airport () is the airport of Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania. It is located south of the city center. It is the largest of the three commercial airports in Lithuania by passenger traffic, with one runway and ...

Kaunas Airport Kaunas Airport () is the second-busiest civil airport in Lithuania after Vilnius Airport and the fourth-busiest in the Baltic states. The airport is located in the central part of the country, northeast of the Kaunas city centre and west fr ...

Palanga International Airport Palanga International Airport ( ) is a regional international airport located near the resort town Palanga at the Baltic Sea. It is the third largest airport in Lithuania and focuses on short and mid-range routes to European destinations. It ser ...

* SE Air Navigation * SE Inland Waterways Authority * Klaipėda State Seaport * SE Railway Design * PC Aukštaitijos siaurasis geležinkelis * SC Problematika * SE Transport and Road Research Institute * SC Lithuanian Post * The State of inland navigation office * Transport Investment Directorate * PI "Plačiajuostis internetas" * Civil Aviation Administration * The Lithuanian Maritime Safety Administration * AB "Lithuanian Railways" * JSC "Geležinkelio apsaugos želdiniai" * JSC "Smiltynės perkėla" * JSC "Detonas" * SE Lithuanian Radio and Television Centre * JSC "Lithuanian Shipping Company"

References

* REGULATIONS OF THE MINISTRY OF TRANSPORT AND COMMUNICATIONS OF THE REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA

{{authority control Ministry of Transport and Communications (Lithuania),

Transport Transport (in British English) or transportation (in American English) is the intentional Motion, movement of humans, animals, and cargo, goods from one location to another. Mode of transport, Modes of transport include aviation, air, land tr ...