Roads in Estonia increasingly resemble patchwork quilts, as there is no money for fresh asphalt — a clear sign of chronic underfunding in road maintenance. This year, the Transport Administration has €100 million available for road upkeep and preserving the road network, but according to Meelis Leigri, head of the agency's road assets department, at least €200 million is actually needed.

"We've reassessed the scope of our repair measures and how funding is distributed between them. At this point, we've effectively shelved reconstruction projects because we simply don't have the money. We have about €130 million worth of reconstruction projects sitting in the drawer — that's around 230 kilometers of roads — but all of them are on hold, waiting for better funding," Leigri said.

There are 1,177 bridges on Estonia's national roads and 169 of them already have a weight limit of 60 tons. Another 100 bridges are awaiting repairs.

"With current funding levels, we can't maintain the condition of our bridges as they are today. We've deliberately postponed major bridge repairs because they would consume our entire bridge budget," Leigri noted.

The condition of road surfaces is generally very good on the country's main highways. However, more than 2,000 kilometers of secondary and local roads remain in poor or very poor condition. These are smaller roads that are not eligible for European Union funding for maintenance.

Last week, Minister of Infrastructure Kuldar Leis approved the new national road maintenance plan through 2028, but the document foresees no major breakthroughs in funding for local roads.

"This year's state budget is already set and negotiations for next year and beyond will begin in August. The state of the roads will definitely be a key issue in those talks because, while all of Estonia is investing in national security, roads are in fact part of that security," said Leis.

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