Full continuous shift work is progressing rapidly to complete the Vlora Bypass road, one of the major and most important road infrastructure projects with an extraordinary impact on development of tourism industry in the country’s south. The new bypass will boost traffic capacity and bring tourists closer to the Ionian coast and it would support development of another resource-rich area, and it will also offer motorists and visitors a unique driving and travelling experience through a panoramic and amazing landscape.
Prime Minister Edi Rama today evening visited one of the road’s segment, where building the fourth bridge and the related infrastructure and asphalt paving work is progressing rapidly.
“We visited this segment in May, when the first two kilometres of the new road were paved back then, while asphalt pavement has already completed along a 12.5-km stretch of the road. In the meantime, two more kilometres of the road will be paved this weekend. We are visiting several construction sites along the Vlora bypass and work continues day and night. The third shift just started its work. This is the fourth 110-m long bridge, while construction of the bridges number one and five is nearing completion. Work continues to build the second, third and fourth bridge,” the Minister of Infrastructure and Energy Belinda Balluku said, adding that construction work has progressed at a satisfactory rate. “The work has progressed well, also thanks to the nice and dry weather conditions. The construction company is toiling ceaselessly to complete the project. Work on the Vlora bypass project has reached 60% completion, taking also into account the short delays due to the expropriation issues in the area of Kanina, as affected families have been unable to provide the property ownership documents on time. However, the Albanian Road Authority is working and is helping residents to obtain and submit the required documents. The expropriation value is estimated around 60 million lek, while more property documents are being processed,” she said.
The new bridges are being built to meet highest safety standards and requirements after the seismic coefficients are being recalculated in order to ensure highest safety. “We are here at the fourth bridge and the 19th kilometre of the road. The highest point on this bridge is 48 meters. The work to construct this bridge kicked off four months ago. We have recalculated the seismic coefficients on the upper part. I am confident that construction of the fourth and third bridge will complete by January 15, whereas construction of the first and fifth bridges has already completed, while the asphalt paving has yet to complete. The entire bypass project is set to complete by end of February or early March,” the project manager said, adding that best solution has been provided to the greenery issues.
The Minister of Infrastructure Balluku that the project has progressed quickly also thanks to the cooperation with the funding bodies. “Very good cooperation relations have been established with the funding bodies since the EUR 38 million-project is co-financed by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Union. We have maintained continued contacts with them. No delays have been encountered after resolving an inherited problem and the construction work has continued ceaselessly since last May,” she said.
Prime Minister Rama praised the builder for the excellent work so far, while the Mayor of Vlora, Dritan Leli said that the volume of work carried out by the construction company is impressive. “An incredible volume of work has been carried out that could seem unbelievable to the people who have never been here. The volume of work is impressive, really,” he said.
