Arbri Road to be completed by end of December
The Arbri Road, a key highway connecting Tirana with Dibra in northeastern Albania, is set to be fully completed by the end of December.
Why is this important
The Arbri Road greatly shortens the distance between one of the most isolated and poorest areas of Albania to Tirana, creating opportunities for development in the area of tourism, agriculture, mining and energy. What used to be a trip of many hours through winding, narrow mountain passes will now be reduced to between 1 and 2 hours.
Context
The Arbri Road is notable for setting a record in terms of construction duration. The project was initiated by the Democratic government of Sali Berisha in 2006. In 2018, it was jumpstarted by the Socialist government and finally, after an 18 year long wait the 86-kilometer road is nearing completion.
Besides the financial reasons, one of the main reasons for the long duration is the Murrizi Tunnel, which has been under construction for several years. The geological composition of the land in this area, primarily clay formations, has made excavation particularly challenging, requiring special structural reinforcements. There have been multiple instances of tunnel collapses, further slowing the progress.
Work on the final 400 meters of the 3.2-kilometer Murrizi Tunnel is currently underway. The Minister of Infrastructure, who inspected the construction on Wednesday, confirmed that the work on the tunnel is nearing its conclusion, as are the other engineering feats along the route, such as two bridges standing 29 and 18 meters high. Additionally, the Arbri Road features the tallest bridge in the region, the Vasha Bridge, which stands at 152 meters tall.
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