The section under reconstruction of almost 16 km is located between Marijampolė and the village of Skardupiai. It is the longest of the four sections where works between Marijampolė and the Polish border are taking place or are planned. The value of the contract signed for the reconstruction works is approximately EUR 223.6 million.
“Via Baltica is currently also being reconstructed into a four-lane motorway in other sections of the road, so when the new stage of reconstruction begins, construction works will be carried out at the same time on a section of almost 30 km. Until now, no construction of a motorway of this scale has taken place during Lithuania’s independence. We hope for a smooth and timely implementation of this section,” said Minister of Transport and Communications Marius Skuodis.
The section where the works will soon start will be reconstructed into four lanes, it is planned to build and reconstruct the existing two-level intersections and junctions, tunnel crossings and bridges, and to build about 45 km of connecting roads. To protect residential areas from noise and other pollution, about 8 km of noise barriers will be installed. In addition, at the intersection of Via Baltica and the Marijampolė–Kybartai road, there will be a modern car park with an area of 11 hectares, where separate areas for freight, passenger transport and electric vehicles will be provided, and the necessary recreational infrastructure will be built.
According to Aivaras Vilkelis, Director of the Transport Infrastructure Planning and Innovation Department of the Road Administration, when preparing the project for this highway section, a lot of focus was placed on the smoothest possible traffic organisation at the city of Marijampolė, so that during the implementation of the project, both the residents of Marijampolė and those driving on Via Baltica would be less disturbed. In addition, in response to business needs, the project will provide access to the territory of Marijampolė FEZ.
“This project is an example of good cooperation between the Lithuanian Road Administration and local government: when designing the section and coordinating the design solutions, the local government was very active and provided full assistance,” says A. Vilkelis.
Since last year, two sections from 72.50 to 85 km are under reconstruction on the Via Baltica road A5 Kaunas-Marijampolė-Suwałki between the village of Skardupiai in Marijampolė municipality and the village of Smalninkai in Kalvarija municipality. This section is scheduled to finish this year. In addition, the tender for the contract for the fourth section of the highway from 85 km to 97.06 km, i.e., to the Polish border, is also planned to be announced this year. Works in a section of Via Baltica of about 40 km in total (from 56.83 km to 97.06 km) are planned to be completed in 2025.
The Via Baltica highway between Marijampolė and the Polish border is one of the most intensive traffic routes in Lithuania. On average, nearly 14,000 cars per day pass through it, half of which consists of freight transport. Once the reconstruction is completed, this road will meet the international standards of infrastructure safety and traffic organisation. It will be a safe and convenient connection for travelling from Kaunas, as well as from Vilnius to Poland and further to Western European countries.
