Foreign Investors to Fund 85% of Tashkent-Samarkand Road
Foreign Investors to Fund 85% of Tashkent-Samarkand Road / Photo: Press-service of the President of Uzbekistan
Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.uz) — Foreign investors will finance 85% of the US$2.2 billion construction of a new toll road between Tashkent and Samarkand, while the remaining 15% will come from the state budget, Road Committee Chairman Jamshid Tursunov said on O‘zbekiston 24 television.
Construction of the new highway began after Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev launched the project on 22 July. Authorities have linked the need for the new road to rising traffic volumes on the existing route between Tashkent and Samarkand.
According to Tursunov, the existing road was originally designed to handle 20,000-30,000 vehicles a day, but currently carries up to 60,000 vehicles daily. Economic growth, rising household incomes and further increases in traffic have created a need for an alternative highway.
The new road will be about 280 km long and have six lanes. Its capacity will range from 60,000 to 80,000 vehicles a day. The project includes the construction of 92 bridges, 28 overpasses and 60 pedestrian crossings, as well as underpasses and water-management structures for agricultural needs.
The road surface will be made of monolithic concrete designed to withstand heavy traffic from trucks and high-speed vehicles. Digital solutions and intelligent traffic management systems are also planned for the highway.
During preparation of the project, authorities studied toll-road construction experience in Turkey, Germany and South Korea. Consultations were also held with international engineering companies and contractors.
The new highway is estimated to reduce the cost of freight transportation by 19%-24%. The project is also expected to increase gross regional product in Tashkent, Syrdarya, Jizzakh and Samarkand regions by about 3%.
At the construction launch ceremony, Mirziyoyev said the road was being designed for operation over the next 50-60 years rather than only for the near term.
According to figures cited in the O‘zbekiston 24 report, a World Bank analysis found that every dollar invested in similar infrastructure projects can generate an economic return of up to five times the investment.
