Works on the Soroska tunnel to begin in 2023

The state plans to start the construction of the Soroska tunnel in the region of Kosice in 2023 as part of the R2 road project, Minister of Transport and Construction Andrej Dolezal (We Are Family nominee) assured local representatives and mayors during his visit to Jablonov nad Turnou (Kosice region) on Thursday. "The Soroska project will continue, as well as the whole R2 stretch. We just need to prepare it better, so that it won't backfire in our faces - we can't have another Visnove (tunnel) [a project that saw several false starts in 1998, 2009 and 2015 and still isn't finished to date. The latest estimated completion date is 2023-ed.note]," said Dolezal. The Soroska project is one of the priorities of the ministry, although not a top project. In order to make sure the works begin on schedule, Dolezal finds it important to secure the financing of the project. A public tender on the R2 stretch with the tunnel was launched under the previous government in December 2019 and cancelled by the National Highway Company in early July, due to the lack of a valid construction permit, which could not even be obtained under the original project. The section of the R2 in question measures 14.1 kilometres in length, with the tunnel measuring 4.2 kilometres.