2km tunnel opens in Darial gorge

The construction of a two-kilometer long tunnel at the crossing point of the Darial and Devdorak gorges has been completed.

The Darial pass has strategic importance for Georgia as it is the major route from Georgia to Russia and also represents one of the major roads for transit traffic.

“The Darial tunnel is an unprecedented project for Georgia. A tunnel of such scale has not been built in the country since 1950 when the Rikoti tunnel was built. There has been several disasters in the Darial gorge during last few years, the possibility of the disaster repeating has threatened movement on this part of the strategic road."

Also, the  transit function of the Mtskheta-Stepantsminda-Larsi road had been limited during the disasters which would usually cost Georgia millions of lari daily. After building the tunnel these problems will be solved and movement in the Darial gorge has become safer, the Roads Department said yesterday.

The construction of the tunnel was financed by the state budget and almost 52 million GEL was spent on its construction  since May 2017.