Raz: Karpaty Tunnel Construction Project Has EIA Decision

Bratislava, December 11 (TASR) - The project for constructing the Karpaty tunnel in the Small Carpathian mountain range has obtained a decision under the environmental impact assessment (EIA) procedure, Transport Minister Jozef Raz (a Smer-SD nominee) and Environment Minister Tomas Taraba (a Slovak National Party/SNS nominee) told a joint news conference on Wednesday, adding that a hydrogeological survey will need to be carried out before the preparation of the project itself.
        "The issue of a valid EIA decision for the project is an important step towards one day having a full-value bypass around Bratislava, including its northern part. It's about having a complete bypass and diverting the quarter of a million lorries that pass through Bratislava today away from our capital," said Raz, adding that the tunnel will connect the Zahorie area in western Slovakia with the rest of the country. There are plans to connect it to Austrian and Czech highways in the future as well.
        Raz admitted that the ministry will probably have to seek external resources to finance the tunnel's construction. "It's likely that we'll exempt it from a highway toll and the highway stamp system ... Only those who will pass through the tunnel will pay," added the transport minister.
        The environment minister also confirmed that an EIA decision for the construction of the Karpaty tunnel project has been obtained. "The ministry has dealt with all the objections," he said, adding that the Environment Ministry defined over 150 comments that will have to be monitored or adjusted while the project is being implemented.
        The construction of the D4 motorway between Bratislava's boroughs of Raca and Zahorska Bystrica, including the Karpaty tunnel, has been ranked as a strategic investment. The 11.76-kilometre tunnel should form part of the Bratislava bypass. The construction costs are estimated at approximately €1.7 billion.