Another Step Made Towards Via Baltica Reconstruction from Marijampolė to the Polish Border
State Enterprise Lithuanian Road Administration (later – the Road Administration) has signed the Contract on the last, fourth road section, of implementing the project “The Preparation of Technical Design and Project Implementation Supervision of Main Road A5 Kaunas–Marijampolė–Suwałki section from 56.83 to 97.06 km”.
In spring 2020, when carrying out public procurement “The Preparation of Technical Design and Project Implementation Supervision of Main Road A5 Kaunas–Marijampolė– Suwałki section from 56.83 to 97.06 km”, the road was divided into 4 sections. Contracts on the reconstruction of three sections were signed in June-July 2020.
Due to an unsubstantiated complaint of a supplier, the procurement procedures of one section were suspended and the contract signing was cancelled during the legal proceedings. After both the first and the second instance courts stated that the complaint was unsubstantiated, the contract was signed between the Road Administration and the Contractor. Then the design works of the whole road section were started. The last contract was signed on 5 January 2021.
‘The reconstruction of Via Baltica section from Marijampolė to the Polish border will comply with the international standards of infrastructural safety and traffic management. Currently, it is one of the busiest road sections in Lithuania where average annual daily traffic volumes make up 10 thousand vehicles, out of which, 50 per cent of heavy goods vehicles. After reconstruction, there should be zero head-on collisions and new grade-separated intersections, crossings and connecting roads should be constructed. Presumably, the total number of accidents might decrease by 70 per cent’, says the Director of the Road Administration Remigijus Lipkevičius.
At the end of 2019, when the Lithuanian Government approved the special plan of the above-mentioned road section, land acquisition and design works were started. It is planned to complete land acquisition procedures and design works of the whole almost 40 km long section in 2022. The prospective date of starting the works is 2022 and the completion date is December 2025. The project implementation might cost ca 300 million Euros.
In 2021 it is planned to undertake preparatory works for the reconstruction of another section of Via Baltica, i. e. from Kaunas to the Latvian border (sections of state significance main roads A8 Panevėžys–Aristava–Sitkūnai and A10 Panevėžys–Pasvalys–Riga).
It is intended that by 2030 the whole Via Baltica road crossing the Lithuanian territory will be reconstructed, and it will comply with the requirements set to the main TEN-T road network traffic management and safety.