We have made the most rational decision at the moment to build the Gostivar-Bukojchani motorway, taking into account the economic situation of the country and our possibilities to finance this project, Macedonian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport Aleksandar Nikoloski told 360 Degrees in an interview, and explained why this motorway section will be built without a tunnel.
“The difference with and without a tunnel was EUR 250 million, because it is a 5.3 km long tunnel. If I were to ask myself, if I had unlimited funds, of course I would go with a tunnel, but taking into account that 1 km of tunnel is EUR 50 million, and there the estimated value was EUR 250 million, with a 25% discount. So theoretically this tunnel could have been an additional 25%, which would mean that the entire project could have cost over EUR 300 million,” noted Transport Minister Nikoloski.
When asked what the slope of the motorway section will be and what the permitted speed of vehicles will be, Minister Nikoloski replied:
“From 31km to 14km there is up to 6% slope or drop, which is below the motorway standard, because the motorway standard is up to 7%. It will be possible to drive from 110 to 130km per hour on the motorway, because the curves will be milder,” said Nikoloski, emphasizing that engineers, design teams and a company are working on the motorway who are doing the work very seriously and are working according to the latest world practices.
