Albania’s first movable bridge inaugurated on the Buna River

TIRANA, May 24 – Albania has built its first movable bridge on the northern Buna River in Shkodra. The bridge was inaugurated on Tuesday by Prime Minister Sali Berisha, Transport Minister Sokol Olldashi and Montenegrin officials. Built under an Islamic Development Bank-funded project, worth 7.2 million dollars, the bridge will turn the Buna River in Shkodra, the country’s largest northern city, into a fully navigable river, enabling the passage of boats. The construction of the new bridge, just few meters away from the old one will give a final solution to the problematic traffic on the bridge, and ease access to local tourist sites and the Muriqan border checkpoint with Montenegro. Inspecting the reconstruction works during a recent visit, Transport and Public Works Minister Sokol Olldashi said “this is the only bridge in the Balkans with this opening system and after its completion, it will be the River Buna’s turn to be deepened.” The new movable bridge which operates on two electromechanical systems with the opening and closure taking 3.5 to 4 minutes if done electronically and 15 minutes if manually in cases of a possible failure, will be 275.5 meters long and 13.5 meters wide. The two-lane bridge is 6 meters above the river’s surface, according to Ministry of Transport data. The new bridge secures uninterrupted flow of traffic, reduces vehicle operating cost, saves time, and brings about overall economic improvements through enhanced accessibility and mobility. In addition, the new bridge will allow waterway traffic on the Buna River due to its movable design, experts say. The bridge’s reconstruction started in May 2008 and was scheduled to finish in December 2010. “The river has extraordinary importance not only for Shkodra, but all of Albania because it is very important for the connection with Montenegro. The Montenegrin government is very interested in the completion of this bridge”, Prime Minister Berisha said in the inauguration ceremony two years ago. He added that the Buna River now has the ability to return to its former navigable state, as it had been until the end of nineteenth century.