KECHNEC/ KOSICE, August 27, (WEBNOVINY)- Construction of a section of the R4 dual carriageway at the length of 14 kilometers connecting the eastern Slovak metropolis of Kosice with the border town of Milhost started Friday afternoon. The foundation stone for the new road section was laid in the presence of Prime Minister Iveta Radicova, Transport Minister Jan Figel, other cabinet members, and representatives of the National Highway Company. The company Skanska SK, which won the tender with the lowest bid, will build the section for EUR 77.7 million ex-VAT. Works on the road should be finished by January 2013.
The new R4 section will feature four bridges, two flyover crossings, and almost two kilometers of sound barriers. It will cross cadasters of the municipalities of Sebastovce, Valaliky, Haniska, Sokolany, Sena, Kechnec, Perin, and Milhost while it will intersect the Kechnec industrial zone. The completion of the road infrastructure in the east of Slovakia is to increase attractiveness of the region also in the eyes of investors.
Prime Minister Iveta Radicova appreciated that the winner of the R4 section tender, the company Skanska, demanded in its bid almost EUR 40 million less than was the estimated price of the order oscillating around EUR 117 million ex-VAT. She voiced hope that the contractor will also keep the commitment to complete the section within 30 months.
This road represents a base for the completion of the network of dual carriageways with perspective connection to the R2 Roznava-Olsany section and the D1 Budimir-Bidovce highway, according to the Bratislava-based Dopravoprojekt which projected the road. The R4 Kosice – Milhost dual carriageway proposed as a four-lane dual carriageway with traffic in both directions will contribute to easing the traffic burden on the existing I/68 road and, most importantly, to improving the environment of the municipalities of Sena and Kechnec, said Director General and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Dopravoprojekt.
The section is part of the Slovak Republic’s basic road system and part of an international corridor from the Polish town of Rzeszow through Kosice and Debrecin in Hungary to Oradea in Romania. During the opening ceremony, Transport Minister Jan Figel said he would speak with his Polish and Hungarian counterparts to start fluently building the dual carriageway Via Baltica which should connect the Baltic Sea with the Black Sea in Romania and The Mediterranean Sea in Greece.
The 14-kilometer road, which ends at the Slovak-Hungarian border, should open for motorists at the turn of 2012 and 2013. The construction was originally to kick off in June of this year, but the delay was caused by reevaluation of the tender outcome. The investment will be co-financed from the European funds within the Operational Program Transport. The construction of the road commences three weeks after the National Highway Company signed a contract with the picked contractor, the company Skanska SK on August 5. Skanska won the competition with the cheapest bid when its offer was EUR 39 million or one third lower than the estimated price of the project, which was EUR 116.82 million.
SITA