PM: Adriatic-Ionian Motorway Project Important for Croatia

A 1,100 kilometre stretch of motorway passing through Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro, Albania and Greece is an important project for Croatia, Prime Minister Zoran Milanović said yesterday…

The Adriatic-Ionian Motorway was one topic of discussion as Milanović met with his Bosnian and Herzegovinian, Montenegrin and Albanian counterparts in Dubrovnik on Monday.

“The Adriatic-Ionian Motorway project is the common interest of four countries which has not been realised yet. It is important for Croatia as a continuation of a route that connects this region, but it is also important for Montenegro, Albania, and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and for Kosovo too,” the PM said, before adding that the route will not effect the government’s plans to monetize the nations motorways.

The planned motorway route (screenshot hrt)

“They are full only three or four months a year, while during the rest of the year they are empty. Croatia has a population of only 4.3 million, and not 12 million, which means that there are not enough of us to use the motorways all year round,” he said.

Out of all the nations in the region, Croatia has completed the most, constructing around 90% of its share of the Adriatic-Ionian motorway route. The corridor is said to be important for economic development and transport links between western and central Europe, the south-east, and Greece. The Adriatic-Ionian motorway is not expected to be complete in its entirety until 2050.