Modern, safe highway opens in Georgia

The highway upgrade of one of Georgia’s major roads has reached a milestone.

Yesterday the Ministry of Regional Development and Infrastructure of Georgia opened the 19 kilometre section of the Ruisi-Agara Highway in east Georgia. 

This section of highway is part of a major road that’s used by many cars every day. Also known as the East-West Highway or E-60, the road is the main route from east to west Georgia, but also directs motorists from neighbouring Azerbaijan and Russia, which connects to Turkey and Armenia.

The total cost of the project reached 70 million GEL. Photo by the Ministry of Regional Development and Infrastructure of Georgia. 

About 500 men worked for the past two years to restore the highway. The total cost of the project reached 70 million GEL, said officials at yesterday’s opening ceremony.

The event was attended by local representatives and envoys from Embassy of China to Georgia, as construction works had been carried out by Chinese firm China Nuclear Industry 23.  

The upgrade saw creation of a four-lane concrete road, five road crossings and three two-level parallel bridges be built.

Georgia's Minister of Infrastructure and Regional Development, Nodar Javakhishvili, opened the new highway. Photo by the Ministry of Infrastructure and Regional Development of Georgia. 

Construction of the highway started in December 2012 using finances allocated from the World Bank (WB) and the Georgian state budget.

The highway is being upgraded section by section to ensure the road meets high European road standards. The road renovation is part of the Government’s efforts to upgrade state infrastructure in Georgia.