The Korito tunnel, the first tunnel on the Croatian island of Brač, is a critical portion of an important bypass, and everything could be finished by the beginning of the 2020 tourist season.
In April this year, a contract with the company Strabag d.o.o., worth HRK 32 million, was signed for the construction of a bypass around the town of Ložišća on the island of Brač. As JutarnjiList reports on November 24, 2019; the contractual deadline is 18 months, which means that construction of the tunnel is expected to be complete by late October 2020, Hrvatske ceste (Croatian Roads) reported.
The 1560-meter-long bypass of Ložišća, along with the Korito tunnel, is the most significant construction project ever undertaken on Brač. The tunnel is the first ever built on the island of Brač and the first tunnel being built on Croatian state roads in six years.
The Korito tunnel will be 190 meters long with portal structures and involve 160 meters of excavation. Excavation of the northern precinct of the Korito Tunnel began on August 1, 2019 and the tunnel excavation itself began on September 5.
At the beginning of October, at the end of tourist season, work began on the excavation of the southern portion of the tunnel, which temporarily closed the local road which connects the town of Bobovišća with the rest of the coastal road network. Traffic for this settlement has been diverted to a temporary road in partnership with the town of Milna and Mayor, Fran Lozić. Temporary communal, fire and other services have been set up to operate effectively on this modest-sized detour road. The excavation of the tunnel is being carried out according to conservation guidelines to preserve the church of Gospe od Korita (Our Lady of Korita), which is close-by.
In order to re-open the seaside road to Bobovišća for traffic as soon as possible, completing construction on the southern concrete tunnel portal is the top priority and targeted for end of February 2020.
Work on the rest of the route is progressing well, and an early completion of the contractually agreed deadline is expected. In fact, it’s possible that the road will be in full use for the 2020 tourist season.
Hrvatske ceste, which operates a network of state roads with a total length of 7152 kilometers, is continually investing in the construction and upgrade of roads which connect the islands to the mainland. They are also improving the transport infrastructure of the islands, which is important for locals throughout the entire year and for tourists during the summer months.
Here is a video of the Korito tunnel project from Hrvatske Ceste:
And a recent aerial video of Ložišća on the island of Brač:
More information on Hrvatske Ceste (Croatian Roads) projects can be found on their excellent website here. For more information on infrastructure developments in Croatia, follow our lifestyle page.
