Author: Aurora SHPATAJ
Its change, as is currently happening, without a feasibility (reliability) study, is unacceptable and outside the standards, which the Albanian government itself has approved and completely contrary to the national interest. The project requires its reassessment and before partial projects are carried out, mandatory implementation. So, a study must be carried out, as we mentioned above, a full feasibility study, which would accurately determine the best alternative in economic terms and why not, social, political, etc. "- this is how engineer Faruk Kaba begins his story about Corridor 8.
Corridor 8 is one of the country's most important projects, because it develops all the cities it passes through. In the first studies, it was predicted that this corridor will cross the southern Italian ports of Bari and Brindisi, the ports of Durrës and Vlora, pass through the capitals of Tirana, Skopje, Sofia, ending in the Bulgarian ports of Burgas and Varna. According to engineer Faruk Kaba, Corridor 8 has been studied several times over the years, according to the only rational alternative, which develops it in the Shkumbin Valley, passes through a tunnel of about 2,8 km in Qafë - Thane and after this tunnel is divided into two main directions:
1) From Qafë - Thana in the territory of North Macedonia, in Skopje, Burgas and Varna in the Black Sea;
2) The other direction from Qafë-Thana to Korçë, Kapshticë, Thessaloniki and Istanbul. According to the engineer, corridor 8 is not only important for Albania. Its realization will have a great interest not only economically, but also strategically for some member countries of the European Union and will turn Albania into a key country in the international road network.
Sa is the cost of the corridat 8 o'clock in Albanianre?
According to a press release by the Minister of Infrastructure and Energy, Belinda Balluku, dated April 3, 2023, the minister stated that Corridor 8 has a new exit in North Macedonia.
" The whole situation in Ukraine has also helped us, as Corridor 8 is an access corridor for the entire security of Europe and the national security of all countries, since it connects the Mediterranean Sea with the Black Sea, thus creating a high security corridor. Here we have concrete achievements and this must be said. The Albanian government, the Ministry of Interior, have already started work on the construction of Corridor 8 with the first lot of the Elbasan-Qafë Thanë road. "
The engineer tells "Sinjalizo" that the project which is being tried to be implemented in our country is very expensive from an economic point of view.
" The project that is currently being undertaken is completely inflexible from an economic point of view, it is very expensive (at least 150 million Euros), but above all it is completely out of our interest. As is clear, the standards and all the officially approved rules that very clearly define such a thing have been violated ."
He says that this project will mean that the southeast of our country will not be connected to the highway of corridor 8, and as a result, to go to Pogradec, Korça, we must first pass through North Macedonia.
" Even if this changed version of this corridor had been requested by our neighbors (Macedonia), there was no need to even consider it, as it contradicts what has been decided before and above all with our interest. According to this idea, without real engineering content and logic and not studied, Albanian citizens (and not only), to pass from other regions of the country, in the direction of 'Pogradec-Korcë-Kapëstica' and beyond, would have to pass through Macedonia first. This is completely absurd, not to mention the expression "stupidity" or "technical, professional idiocy". The professional study that imposes standards would solve this absurdity ."
Engineer Fisnik Kruja holds the same position, who says that this project has serious problems.
" According to this variant, the highway connection of an important part of the territory of Southeastern Albania (Pogradec, Maliq, Bilisht, Kapshtica) is compromised, as is the perspective of the connection with the Greek territory, where the highway up to our border has already been completed. The highway connection with Kapshtica is of interest especially for Italy, but also for Turkey ."
The engineer says to "Signalizo" that this project risks losing a lot if the studied project changes.
" On the political level, first, the Republic of Albania loses sovereignty over one of the country's two main corridors, because the tunnel exit will be on the territory of a neighboring country. As a result, the circulation of vehicles may eventually be under the effect of the political mood of that country ."
Even the former Minister of Public Works Spartak Poçi, one of the ministers who closely dealt with the 8th corridor, says that the problems of this project is that the work started without a study.
"It has begun to be built without a study. With what funds, with what study, has it been made public? A project is needed on how the roads can be widened, curves reduced, a study is needed first, a financing scheme, an implementation project, a feasibility study ."
Former minister Poçi says that every change in the corridor 8 project means that it will no longer be called as such.
" The route of the eighth corridor is defined, it cannot change, it should not, because any change will lead to this project no longer being called the eighth corridor."
Meanwhile, work on the construction of the eighth Corridor within the territory of Albania has begun at the exit of Elbasan. According to the bulletin of public announcements, in May 2023 a contract was signed "Study Design of the road axis 'Bushtricë - Corridor 8 Customs Point'," where the limit fund is ALL 49,990,353.04.
"Sinjalizo" sent a request for information to the Ministry of Infrastructure and Energy on this issue, if there is a feasibility study for corridor 8. Until the moment of publishing the article, the ministry has not responded.
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