‘World’s most dangerous road’ to Tusheti being upgraded, modernised

The road leading to Georgia’s iconic Tusheti mountain area is currently among the world’s most dangerous roads, but soon this will change.

The road is set to be rehabilitated and modernised to make it easier and safer to travel to the mountainous area.

Today Georgia’s Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili travelled to Tusheti to attend the public celebration Tushetoba, where he announced the road would be rehabilitated to meet modern, European standards and it will better link the rural area with Georgia’s capital Tbilisi.

This road will be constructed using modern methods and this European standard road will join Georgia’s capital and Tusheti, ensuring tourists can cover the distance more quickly and as safely as possibly,” said Kvirikashvili.

Upgrading the road was important for preserving Tusheti region and its culture for future generations.

Georgia's PM celebrating Tushetoba with locals. Photo by the PM's press office. 

A tender has been announced and is open to interested companies who wish to renovate the alpine road.

This road will be multifunctional in the sense of tourism development, to ensure a higher income for local residents and foster their motivation to establish more small hotels and develop their local crafting traditions.

The road will also have a security function since this is our borderline region, hence, ensuring [Tusheti] remains inhabited is crucial. It will definitely serve the purpose of preserving cultural heritage as well, since this task will be rendered unattainable without road, communication and relevant infrastructure,” said the PM.

In Tusheti Kvirikashvili joined the Tushetoba celebration and congratulated local shepherds on this annual holiday and thanked them for their efforts to preserve "this gorgeous region”, which Kvirikashvili said was the "gem of the country”.

Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili is shooting an arrow at Tusheti celebration. Photo by the PM's press office.  

Every Tushetian resident is a shield of Georgia that performs the function of border guard protecting the country's north-eastern border. Your heroism preserved this culture for us – this beautiful culture that we observe here today and that we are rightfully proud of,” said the PM.

Within the Tushetoba celebration, Kvirikashvili visited the visitors’ centre of the Protected Areas and an exhibition of Tushetian handmade items. He also tasted traditional Tushetian dishes, attended a celebratory concert, watched archery competitions and other traditional martial arts games.

Tushetoba celebrations are closely related to the ancient profession of the local population - sheep breeding – and the public event has been marked in August every year for the past hundred years.