Romania’s Comarnic-Brasov motorway to be completed in 2017, says PM

Newsroom 16/01/2014 | 10:40

Buildings works on the Comarnic-Brasov motorway are set to start on April 20, and should be completed by 2017, said Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta.

The Vistrada Nord consortium, comprising France’s Vinci, Austria’s Strabag and Greece’s Aktor, will build the 53 kilometer motorway and another 7 kilometers of linking roads. The project runs a cost of EUR 1.8 billion, accounting for roughly 28 million per kilometer, according to PM Ponta.

The motorway will pierce through the Carpathian mountains and should significantly cut down travel times between Bucharest and Brasov, and in the same time ease traffic on the National Road 1 (DN1), linking Bucharest to northwestern Romania. This will be the first motorway to operate under the pay-to-use system. Drivers will have to pay a toll of RON 5.7 (EUR 1.2)/VAT excluded.

“At present negotiations are underway with banks to finance the projects. Normally, by April 20 we should sign the contract and inaugurate the building site from Comarnic (e.n. town in Prahova County) and from Cristian (e.n. locality in Brasov County),” said the PM on Thursday, quoted by Agerpres newswire.

The consortium has inked today a memorandum with the government on the construction of the motorway, under a concession system.