Road Work Ahead

Vehicle traffic on the East-West Highway connecting Tbilisi and Batumi will be temporarily restricted on the Samtredia-Lanchkhuti-Grigoleti section. 

The restrictions are related to repair works at the railway crossing located at the ninth kilometer of the road. The Georgian Railway Company (GDZ) plans to start work today and will finish late on August 22. Due to this, the road had to be closed and traffic detoured to a parallel unpaved road. The traffic in the area will be regulated by GZD staff under the direct supervision of the patrol police.

Another road, the Voskepar-Noyemberyan section of the interstate highway, is the best way to travel from Armenia to Georgia. The interstate Voskepar-Noyemberyan highway is almost unrecognizable with its newly glazed asphalt-concrete surface. Workers are still stopping cars every now and then, but not for long.

Road works to restore this section of one of the most important interstate routes began two months ago, with many in Armenia attributing the long awaited repairs to newly elected Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

"The issue of building or reconstructing roads is not solved in a day; construction work on this road was planned last year already," said a spokesman from the Armenian Ministry of Transport Anahit Arakelyan.

Work has begun on three separate sections of the interstate road; the total length being 18.3 kilometers. In one place, only the foundation has been laid, and on another the damaged road surface has been completely restored. Armenia confirmed that everything is going according to plan and the workers are ahead of schedule on the project.

Smooth roads are important to all drivers, but especially large vehicle drivers transporting cargo or passengers between Yerevan and Tbilisi.

By Shawn Wayne