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Half of the Struma Expressway construction activities have already been completed. The primary liner of the facility on the south side reached 931 m for the left pipe and 838 m for the right. From the north, 837 m of right pipe and 838 m of left pipe have been excavated. Laying of the secondary tunnel lining has also started. On the south side, the concrete works in the walls and the vault of the right pipe are 132 m and in the north 186 m, this was announced by the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works.
The tunnel was built according to a new Austrian method, excavating approximately one and a half meters, two in each pipe and direction in one day, and immediately afterwards the primary lining of the facility with fasteners, shotcrete and anchors was made. Construction activities started in October last year and the site is working 24 hours without interruption.
Zheleznitsa is the longest road tunnel ever built in Bulgaria. It will have two independent pipes for movement in the direction, the length of each one will be about 2 km. The facility will have all the necessary systems for lighting, ventilation, video surveillance, fire alarm, and intelligent traffic management system.
VIDEO Zheleznitsa Tunnel: Ministry of Territorial Development and Public Works.
At the same time, a bridge was built along the direct route, passing over the Suha Reka river, a retaining wall on the direct route, another bridge over the Suha Reka river along with a tunnel service on the southern portal of the tunnel from Simitli town and a helicopter pad.
Work is also being done on the viaduct, which is in front of the Railway, which runs from Sofia to the Tower, as well as on the section after the tunnel. The viaduct has an upper structure completed on the highway to Sofia. It is built using the “push-pull” technology of the superstructure with hydraulic jacks. The bridge crosses 6 obstacles: the Struma River, the E79 road, the current and future railway line, the municipal road and the tunnel service road. The road to Sofia is 560 m long and the road to the Tower is 510 m. The installation consists of two bridges for the two lanes, each of 21 sections. Each segment is pushed one by one, so there is no need to stop traffic on the E79 Sofia-Kulata road and on the railway line. This year the push on the road to Sofia was completed, and on the road to the Tower the tension of the first section is approaching.
The Struma Highway rail tunnel construction project is co-financed by the European Union Cohesion Fund and the national budget through the PO Transport and Transport Infrastructure 2014-2020.
Preparatory work continues for the complete completion of the Struma Highway in the section through the Kresna Gorge and contractors have already been determined for a new section of almost 24 kilometers in the direction of Kulata – Sofia, which will pass east of the gorge . It is divided into two lots so that the site can work simultaneously. The contractors for lot 3.2.1 and lot 3.2.2 have been selected, but the construction works of the two sites may begin after the fulfillment of the commitments made to the European Commission. Namely – complement the environmental documentation to the specific objectives for the species and habitats subject to protection in the two protected areas of the Natura 2000 network, through which Lot 3.2 of the Struma Highway passes, reducing the pressure of traffic on the nature and increasing safety on the section of the E-79 through the gorge.
In 2020, the construction of all strategic road projects progressed: Hemus and Europe roads, Vidin – Botevgrad, the reconstruction of the South Arch of the Sofia ring road.
In early November, the construction of the first 17 km of the Europa Motorway, between Dragoman and Slivnitsa, was completed. A second lane has been built and the old one has been rebuilt to the size of a road. The section has two lanes for directional traffic and one lane for emergency stops. There are two road junctions, as well as 11 large facilities.
Construction continues on the other 14.5 km section of the Europa highway, from the Kalotina border checkpoint to Dragoman. The construction works began in February of this year and by contract should be completed in January 2022. Works are being carried out along the entire route, earth and road works are being carried out, reinforced embankments and walls are being built fortification.
For the third section from Slivnitsa to the connection with the North Speed Tangent, which is 16 km long and will go through a new route, the technical design has been drawn up. The detailed development plan is currently being processed and public tenders for the contractor and supervision of the stretch will be announced next year.
The first layers of asphalt are already being laid along the route of the Hemus Highway on the stretch from Boaza to the Dermantsi road junction, at the junction with the 3rd class III-307 Lukovit – Ugarchin road. This is section 1, with a length of 15.2 km, originating from the phased construction of 134 km of the road between the “Boaza” road junction and the connection with the I-5 Ruse – Veliko Tarnovo road, which begins in April 2019. Currently on the section between Boaza and the junction with the Pleven – Lovech highway, which is divided into three sections, excavations and embankments are being carried out, work is being done on large facilities. The 51.5-kilometer stretch will feature various types of large transportation facilities: viaducts, bridges, overpasses and underpasses. In section 2, with a length of 19.2 km, which is from the end of p. Dermantsi newspaper to the connection with the road III-3005 Radyuvene – Katunets, including p. Kalenik newspaper, and in section 3, with a length of 17.08 km – from p. Kalenik newspaper to the connection with the II-35 Pleven – Lovech highway, and p. The newspaper Pleven, earthworks and road works are carried out, as well as activities for the construction of large facilities.
In the next three sections on p. Newspaper Pleven to the junction with the I-5 Ruse – Veliko Tarnovo road preparatory activities are carried out for the cleaning of the land and the construction of temporary roads. For the last three sections of the Hemus Highway – 7, 8 and 9, which go from the junction with the Ruse – Veliko Tarnovo road to the “Buhovtsi” road junction, research activities continue for the preparation of technical projects, of according to the agreed deadlines. The construction of a 16.3 km stretch between the “Buhovtsi” and “Belokopitovo” road junctions on the territory of the Shumen and Targovishte districts is progressing and is expected to be ready in mid-2021.
The overall construction of the Hemus Expressway by 2024 is an important priority in the Government Management Program, as the future of Northern Bulgaria and the modernization of the region are related to the construction of the motorway and the provision of road communications fast and safe. The highway will connect Sofia with Varna and double the first-class roads E70 from Varna to Shumen, E772 from Shumen to Yablanitsa and E83 from Yablanitsa to Sofia.
The construction of more than 128 km for the Vidin – Botevgrad route has already been assigned. Last year, work began on one of the most complex sections – Mezdra – Botevgrad and Vidin – “Makresh” road junction. In the section of the highway I-1 Mezdra – Lyutidol, one lane is ready and since mid-December the traffic in the section is carried out in both directions with temporary organization and temporary road signs. Construction work continues in parallel on the adjacent lane, as well as throughout the entire mileage of the site. This year, the state company Avtomagistrali EAD was assigned to build 65.8 km of the route, on the section between the Makresh road junction and the Montana ring road. It is divided into five sections and the term for each one is different: from 28 to 32 months.
Under the contract, the 6-kilometer section of the South Arc of the Sofia Ring Road should be ready by the end of 2021, but at the rate at which the builders are working, the site may be completed sooner. To facilitate winter traffic and increase safety, traffic was allowed on the direct route in two sections of the reconstructed section: 1.7 km between the “Mladost” and “Gorublyane” road junctions and 2.5 km from the connection with the “Thracian” road to the “German” road junction. The traffic has a temporary organization, temporary road signs and in the next year the laying of the last asphalt layer of wear and the execution of all the finishing works will continue.
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