First section of Kakheti Highway to open this year, says Infrastructure Minister

Georgian Infrastructure Minister Irakli Karseladze on Wednesday said the first section of the Kakheti Highway, a project stretching from the capital of Tbilisi to the central part of the eastern Kakheti region, would become operational this year, with the remaining sections opening in 2024.

The Ministry cited Karseladze as saying the construction of the four-lane Highway was "actively underway", with the ₾527,169,937 ($202,387,128) works financed from the state budget and slated to “completely relieve traffic in populated areas”. 

The first 35 km section is very important, which is extremely congested in the conditions of increased tourist flows, and the successful completion of the said project will be important during the season”, he said.

Karseladze also said he expected improved traffic safety and reduced travel times following the completion of the project, with potential reduction of travel time from Tbilisi to Sagarejo municipality to one hour and 20 minutes.

Photo: Ministry of Infrastructure

The Highway is divided into two sections - a 35km Tbilisi-Sagarejo and 16.6km Bakurtsikhe-Tsnori roads.

The former is itself composed of three sections - the Vaziani bypass road, Vaziani-Sagarejo section and Sagarejo bypass road - with construction underway on all three. 

While being a part of a main highway connecting Tbilisi with Kakheti, the Tbilisi-Sagarejo road also functions as a transit corridor providing connection to the northwestern part of Azerbaijan. The existing road passes through densely populated villages and cities of Vaziani, Sartichala, Ninotsminda and Sagarejo.

After its completion, the Bakurtsikhe-Tsnori road will pass six villages in Alazani lowlands. It will connect the international road spanning between Tbilisi, Bakurtsikhe, Lagodekhi and the Azerbaijani border with the existing local network.