When will we be able to travel from Belgrade to Kragujevac by highway ?

(a detail from the first phase of construction)

City of Kragujevac is getting closer to Corridor 10. The first 5 km of Kragujevac-Batočina highway has already been finished, while remaining 19 km is a main road. Daily number of vehicles on this road, at the peak of the season, is about 8,000, which makes it one of the most used roads of this type in our country.

The idea of construction of Kragujevac-Batočina highway, 24.5 km long, first appeared in 1970's, while the first, aforementioned 5-kilometer section was finished in mid-2007, after Republic of Serbia (70%) and City of Kragujevac (30%) provided about 8m EUR.

Construction of the next section of highway on Kragujevac-Batočina road, from the overpass above Lapovo-Kraljevo railway to the territory of Municipality of Batočina, should be finished by the end of year 2008. For this part of the road (4,200 meters), the state will provide between 4 and 6m EUR. According to the contract on joint investment in Zastava, which was signed by the Government and Fiat, the deadline for completion of the whole highway is year 2011 when the City will finally establish a quality traffic connection with Corridor 10, that is, Belgrade-Niš highway.

The arrival of foreign investors in Kragujevac and Fiat's investment in Zastava have accelerated resolving of the problem of connecting the heart of Šumadija with other parts of our country, as well as with the international roads. Kragujevac-Batočina road is also the shortest connection with Raška region.

- Construction of the section that is 4,200 meters long, which is on the land that belongs to city of Kragujevac, will be finished prior to the end of year 2008. The remaining section of the road, some 15 km long, is on the territory of Municipality of Batočina, while the cloverleaf interchange near the access road to Belgrade-Niš highway (motel Košuta) belongs to Municipality of Lapovo - Vlado Vučković, a member of the City council for economy and entrepreneurship, said in the interview for eKapija. He also added that the completion of Kragujevac – Batočina road required procurement of land in those two municipalities.

(second phase of construction)

The City Planning Directorate of Kragujevac, which designed the documentation for the existing highway section, as well as for the next 4 km, is currently working on the design of the land-utilization plan for the road sections on the territories of municipalities of Batočina and Lapovo.

- The land-utilization plan is the base for resolving of ownership relations, so that, once it is finished, the projected expropriation will be carried out - Petar Arsenijević, the CEO of the City Planning Directorate of Kragujevac, points out and adds that the Directorate closely cooperates with municipalities of Batočina and Lapovo on this project.

Part of the road from the overpass above Lapovo-Kraljevo railway and Corridor 10 will be the junction of the first order.

- This section will have two lanes 7.7 meters wide, a division lane 2 meters wide and an embankment 1.5 meters wide. The speed limit will be 100km/h.

As far as special facilities are concerned, an overpass above Lapovo-Kraljevo railway (for which preliminary project has already been done), a bridge across the Lepenica river (as a part of cloverleaf interchange Kapavac) and another bridge 13 meters long should be built on the section that belongs to the territory of city of Kragujevac.

Arsenijević explains tat the section that was finished in mid-2007 has the profile of a highway, which means that it has two traffic lanes and one stopping lane.

- The width of these three lanes is 10 meters, while the division lane is 4 meters wide, which was anticipated by the preliminary project that was elaborated by the former Directorate for Roads in mid-1970's - says Arsenijević and adds that the same solution was offered by Czech company "Sudop", which designed the feasibility study 7-8 years ago.

Short history

The first junction on Kragujevac-Batočina route was made of gravel and it followed the right bank of the Lepenica river. Its construction started in 1929 and was finished in 1935. Then, after more than two decades, in the period between year 1961 and 1964, a modern asphalt lane was laid and it connected the heart of Šumadija with Bratstvo-Jedinstvo road.

The next step in the process of connecting Kragujevac to the international junction was made between 1978 and 1981 when the current main road was built. This road got a brand new section between Kragujevac and Cvetojevac, through Jovanovačk Polje, and moved to the left bank of the Lepenica.

Ever since, the authorized organs of Municipality of Kragujevac have been trying to connect this city with Corridor 10.