The last lot of the Qukës – Qafë Plloçë road, with a length of 9.3 km, is nearing completion. The engineers of the company “2T” have informed the Municipality of Pogradec that this weekend the last 400 meters will be asphalted, making the entire axis accessible to vehicles. Meanwhile, after the completion of the horizontal and vertical signage, the official announcement for the opening of the entire road is expected.
The road, which is expected to shorten travel times to the southeast of the country, is one of the infrastructure projects that has taken many years to complete. The axis was designed in 2009, while the first loan to finance this work was signed in February 2013.
The loan between the Ministry of Finance on behalf of the Albanian Government and two financial institutions, the Islamic Development Bank and the Saudi Fund for Development, had a total value of $150 million.
Construction work officially began in July 2015, with the road expected to be completed in 2019. But in September 2020, it was announced that another $105.8 million was needed, of which $56.8 million for lots I and II and $49 million for lot III. The need for additional funds was argued with the project's legacy problems.
By the end of 2022, the cost of the road reached 273 million USD. This project was meanwhile expected to be completed at a cost of 150 USD. So by the end of 2022, the cost has almost doubled. By its completion, the cost will reach 400 million USD. So almost four times what was initially predicted.
The Qukës - Qafë Plloçë road axis has a total length of 43.8 km and will be a category C1 road where the permitted speed will be 80 - 90 km/hour.
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