Qukës-Qafë Plloçë/Balluku Axis: Important international artery connecting Albania with neighboring countries

2025-09-05 14:41:00, Aktualitet CNA

Qukës-Qafë Plloçë/Balluku Axis: Important international

One of the most important infrastructure projects for the southeastern region of Albania, the Qukës – Qafë Plloçë road axis, was officially opened to vehicle traffic today. The inauguration ceremony was attended by Prime Minister Edi Rama, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Infrastructure and Energy Belinda Balluku, as well as representatives of local government and citizens of the area.

This 43-kilometer road segment represents a strategic investment that will significantly facilitate movement towards the southeastern area of ??the country, while also creating real development opportunities for the surrounding area, especially in the agriculture, tourism and agrotourism sectors.

Deputy Prime Minister Balluku emphasized that this project, initially launched in 2010-2011, needed a thorough technical review, due to the geological problems of the area and the inconsistency with the needs of local communities.

"We are located in the Qukës-Qafë Plloçë segment, now completely completed, a segment that started with a project from 2010-2011, a project that if you talk to engineers, they would say was a cold and indifferent project to the geology of the area, to all the atmospheric conditions that this area has and, moreover, to all the connections that needed to be made with the villages of the Mokra Highlands community. Then this project started in 2015 and we had to completely review it, so it is 100% changed, respecting, as we said, the connectivity between the inhabited parts, but above all the geology that has been very challenging throughout the entire construction period. There are 43 full kilometers which certainly shorten significantly. It is also a relief for Pogradec because we had a very heavy load recently", - said Deputy Prime Minister Balluku.

Prime Minister Rama underlined the numerous challenges of construction and emphasized the strategic importance of completing this axis.

"I have not forgotten the discussion we had when we inherited this project that had started without a project, which was terrible and which Niko said had to be done. It is the longest, most arduous, most complicated project because it was started backwards. Even now it is a great thing that it is finished, and that the people of the area, for whom it is a great victory, a great liberation, and that this entire area of ??Albania has it at its disposal and will receive all the benefits it brings. It is a very great liberation. It seemed as if it would never end", - said Prime Minister Rama.

The Qukës – Qafë Plloçë axis is part of Corridor 8, an important international artery connecting Albania with neighboring countries. The segment contains two carriageways of 3.75 m each, with a one-meter auxiliary lane on both sides, a third lane in areas with pronounced level differences for safe overtaking, two tunnels, with a total length of about 1.1 km, four bridges, of which two are metal suspension bridges.

The next challenge is effective maintenance, due to the difficult climatic conditions that characterize the mountainous area, such as frost and snowfall.

This investment represents another important step towards modernizing the national infrastructure and strengthening the connection with Corridor 8, paving the way for sustainable development for the region and the country./ CNA