Transport Administration to issue tender for Via Baltica Sauga-Pärnu road
The construction tender for the Via Baltica Sauga-Pärnu section 2+2 will be issued in January. The planning for this 2.6-kilometer segment began four years ago.
The construction will start at the Jänesselja roundabout. The new 2+2 road will initially follow the existing route. Beginning with the roundabout, the intersection will be transformed into a two-lane turbo ring.
"It will be impossible to change lanes on the roundabout as they will be separated by barrier stones," Arto Juhansoo, project manager of the Transport Administration's western infrastructure construction and maintenance department, said. Changing lanes on a roundabout has been a frequent cause of road accidents.
"The 2+2 road will then follow the existing route until it reaches Pärnu. The road then changes to a new direction just before the Salu bus stop, passing through the Rääma swamp, Tuisu street and ending at the Ehitajate road intersection," Juhansoo explained.
We are not talking about the current junction between Tallinn maantee and Ehitajate tee. The section of the Tallinn maantee from where the new road turns towards the swamp will be handed over to the city.
Unlike the present infrastructural solution, the new design allows Hirvela residents to safely reach the supermarket. "Right now, residents of Hirvela cross a road with a traffic light to get to the Coop store, but during construction, we will remove the road block and build a pedestrian tunnel that will allow people to safely cross the road," Juhansoo added.
When it comes to road construction, Pärnu has been an orphan for years. Now the situation has improved.
"Finally, we are developing the main international road Tallinn-Pärnu-Ikla, which runs through our western region and around Pärnu. We are finally constructing the Pärnu-Uulu section that should be completed by the end of 2024 and we are now planning to go ahead with the construction of the Sauga-Pärnu section in January. The Libatse-Sauga section is still in the design phase. Work is steadily progressing, and it's encouraging to see that these long-planned projects are finally getting done," Hannes Vaidla, head of the Transport Administration's western infrastructure construction and maintenance department, said.
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Editor: Kristina Kersa
