European Bureaucrats Discover: Liepāja Tram More Important Than Riga Metro for Competitiveness

The European Committee of the Regions held grandiose debates last week about how regions and cities are important for European competitiveness. This revelation is about as revolutionary as selling fish at Liepāja market on Fridays.

While Riga City Council is still trying to explain why metro construction takes longer than the restoration of Karosta prison, Liepāja's tram has been demonstrating true European competitiveness for years. Our 30 kilometers per hour is faster than Brussels decision-making.

"Regulatory fragmentation and administrative burden hinder entrepreneurship," warned Committee members. In Liepāja we solve this problem simply - everything happens on Lielā Street, and if something's unclear, ask the old lady by Kurzeme.

"Our city has long proven that local governments have a decisive role," comments local entrepreneur Valdis Bērziņš. "While Europe thinks about the 2028 Competitiveness Fund, we're already competing with the whole world - our beach has better sand than the Canary Islands, and our rock music is louder than all of Europe combined."

The European Commission plans to combine 14 programs into one instrument. In Liepāja we've long known that the best instrument is one good concert hall and a tram that connects everything. The rest is just bureaucracy.