Great news for the island of Hvar – new tunnel to connect Split – Dubrovnik motorway.
Vrgorac yesterday hosted a meeting of mayors of towns and municipalities of the Dalmatian hinterland, Makarska Riviera, central Dalmatian islands, Pelješac peninsula and Herzegovina. They have decided to present a joint initiative to the new Croatian government to demonstrate the importance of the construction of the connecting road between Ravča and Drvenik. The meeting was attended by 17 mayors, Split-Dalmatia County Prefect Zlatko Ževrnja and Dubrovnik-Neretva County Deputy Prefect Davorko Obuljen, reports Dalmatinski Portal on January 30, 2016.
Together with many other supporting initiatives, this project would allow for better transport connections between Herzegovina, Biokovo hinterland, Makarska Riviera, the islands of Hvar and Korčula, and the Pelješac peninsula. Better transport links are a prerequisite for the full exploitation of the area’s economic and tourist potential.
The A1-D8 connecting road (Ravča-Drvenik) has long been identified in the Strategy and Program of Physical Planning of Croatia. After many years of financial planning and programming by the Ministry of Transport, the project documentation is finally complete and the project is ready for implementation. The connecting road would be about 7,360 metres long and its main infrastructure feature would be a 5,600 metre long tunnel through the Biokovo mountain. This project would also enable the implementation of other initiatives, such as the new ferry port in Drvenik and a number of other projects which should provide for better traffic links of Hvar, Korčula and Pelješac with the mainland.
The construction of the connecting road Ravča-Drvenik and the establishment of new ferry links enabled by the construction of the new ferry port in Drvenik would ensure better cohesion between the islands and the mainland. It would also lessen the traffic burden in ferry port in Split, since the ferry port in Drvenik and the connecting road Ravča-Drvenik would be the fastest way for tourists to come to Hvar, Korčula and Pelješac. It would be possible to form a corridor “Herzegovina – Biokovo Hinterland – Makarska Riviera – Islands” which would increase the attractiveness and competitiveness of this part of Croatia and Herzegovina. Regional disparities would be decreased, while cross-border cooperation would flourish.
