A new 52-kilometer section of the Rikoti Pass expressway connecting western and eastern Georgia has been opened in Georgia, the country’s Ministry of Regional Development and Infrastructure announced today.
Construction of the highway began in 2019 and was completed in four stages. Individual sections were gradually opened to traffic, and the first two-kilometer section was put into operation in 2020.
Record technical characteristics distinguish the project. The highway includes 51 tunnels and 97 bridges. The longest tunnel is 1.8 kilometers, and the longest bridge is almost 1.4 kilometers. The ministry notes that the highway is equipped with modern lighting systems and meets international road safety standards.
The total cost was approximately 2.6 billion GEL. The project was co-financed by the Asian Development Bank, the European Investment Bank, the World Bank, and the Georgian state budget.
The road through the Ricoti Pass is part of the E-60 European transit route. Starting in the French city of Brest and ending in the Kyrgyz city of Irkeshtam, it is the second-largest European transit corridor.
In Georgia, the E-60 starts at the border with Azerbaijan and ends on the Black Sea coast near the port of Poti. The corridor in Georgia is 392 kilometers long.
