Thursday, May 14 2020 13:54

ArmInfo. In 2020, about 500 km  of au roads will be repaired in Armenia. Of this amount, the  government at a meeting on May 14 approved a program for the  modernization of 185.3 km of roads.

As Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Avinyan noted in his speech, 17.4  billion drams will be allocated from the state budget to implement  the task. It is envisaged, in particular, to overhaul and carry out  an average repair of 97 km of interstate roads, 59 km of the  republican and 33 km of the regional. In addition, it is planned to  upgrade two transport nodes. The Deputy Prime Minister said that  within the framework of the program, tenders were held to identify  contractors for the repair of 241 km of roads, another 80 km of  tender procedures are ongoing, and the construction of the M-6 road  (from the city of Vanadzor to the border with Georgia) is ongoing.  Tigran Avinyan noted that the road rehabilitation process is ahead of  the schedule.

It should be noted that in April of this year, the Armenian  parliament ratified the agreement with the World Bank on the second,  additional financing of the program for the restoration of vital  roads. In May last year, the Board of Directors of the Bank approved  additional funding of 13.4 million euros for the "restoration of the  vital road network" program. Resources will be provided through the  WB structure - the International Bank for Reconstruction and  Development. With these funds, 61 km of vital roads in Aragatsotn,  Ararat, Gegharkunik, Lori and Syunik regions will be additionally  repaired. The loan is provided on a variable spread basis, with a  grace period of 14.5 years with a total repayment term of 25.5 years.  The total cost of the program is estimated at 16.76 million euros, of  which financing of 3.35 million euros will be provided with the  participation of the government. The total length of the road section  within the framework of additional financing will increase to 450 km,  of which 299 km have already been restored.  

To recall, in the first  stage of the program to improve the vital  road network, a vital road  with a total length of 170 km was  restored. Moreover, due to the  saved funds of the program, it was  possible to restore more than  envisaged - roads with a total length  of 41.1 km.  According to the  World Bank, despite significant   improvements in the road network over  the past 10 years, 40% of  Armenia's roads still remain in poor  condition and for one third of  the rural population the road is not  accessible at all times of the  year. The country still needs  significant investment in restoration  and conservation. Limited market connections and poor road conditions  impede the development of  trade in rural areas, which in the case of  some communities can  result in significant losses. Additional  funding will also help  Armenia improve road safety and assess the  real cost of road accidents for people and the economy.