Construction of first section of Belgrade-Čačak highway to start in March 2010

The main project for highway between Belgrade and Čačak should be finished within the next six months, as well as expropriation of land between Ostružnica and Ljig. Exclusion of land around that part of the route is the condition for commencement of construction of the first section in March 2010. Since the development of infrastructure has proved to be one of the key anti-recession measures because it employs significant share of the economy and stimulates consumption, it has been decided that this project, which was under question mark after the failure of the concession contract, should be implemented after all.

The source of funds is still unknown, but, as "Politika" finds out, the options that have been mentioned are: concessions, loans from international finance institutions, and budget funds.

Since the former concessionaire for Horgoš – Požega highway questioned the profitability of construction of the highway section between Belgrade and Čačak due to low frequency of automobiles, the data provided by "Putevi Srbije" show that the economic calculation exists.

Daily flow of about 16,000 vehicles on the roads in our country is big enough for the highway to be lucrative. The number of vehicles on the road between Lipovačka forest and Ćelije ranges between 10,000 and 20,000 on daily basis, depending on the section. That means that the construction of the section between Ostružnica and Ljig is completely justified. Since, in addition to the frequency of automobiles, road safety and even development of land are taken in consideration in the analysis, there are plenty of reasons for construction of the highway towards Čačak.

According to the preliminary estimates, construction of 78 kilometers of road between Belgrade and Ljig would cost about 280m EUR, the section between Ostružnica and Umka would cost about 23m EUR, while 7.6 km of Umka – Obrenovac road costs 65m EUR. Obrenovac – Ub is the next section and it would cost about 70m EUR, Ub – Lajkovac road section would cost 49m EUR, while 24 km of road between Lajkovac and Ljig would cost 72.5m EUR.

Which of these sections will be the first on the tender will depend on the money that the state has at its disposal. Since the highway to Čačak may be financed from the budget, it is most likely that it would be one of the cheaper sections.

(Note: complete text is taken over from newspaper Politika of May 15, 2009)