PS Wants Gov't to Commit Itself to Plan for Financing R2 Construction in South

Rimavska Sobota, 13 April (TASR) - The opposition Progressive Slovakia (PS) party has called on the government to make a commitment to the residents of the Gemer area and clearly define how it will finance the planned construction of two sections of the R2 expressway near the town of Rimavska Sobota (Banska Bystrica region), stated MP Jan Hargas (PS) at a press conference in Rimavska Sobota's borough of Bakta on Monday following a symbolic blockade of the I/16 road. Hargas said that the main purpose of the symbolic blockade of the main southern route in the borough of Bakta was to draw attention to the government's long-standing inaction regarding the construction of the expressway in southern Slovakia. "It's been nearly 20 years since Robert Fico's government, at its 2007 away-from-home session in the town of Tisovec [Banska Bystrica region), promised the people of the Gemer area that it would build an expressway to Kosice," noted Hargas, adding that instead of an expressway, residents of Rimavska Sobota district have cracked building facades and hundreds or thousands of lorries passing by their windows every day. PS noted that while the government recently issued two public tenders for new sections of the R2 expressway, it lacks the financial resources to build them. "It's obvious that no construction will take place as long as there's no funding,," stated Hargas. The National Highway Company (NDS) announced tenders for two new sections of the R2 in southern central Slovakia at the end of March, including the 8.3-kilometre Zacharovce-Batka section and the 6.3-kilometre Batka-Figa section in Rimavska Sobota district, both of which are half-profile stretches. The estimated total cost is nearly €400 million. Transport Minister Jozef Raz (a Smer-SD nominee) announced that the state will primarily seek EU funding for both projects. NDS will sign contracts with future contractors only after securing financing for the construction of the two sections. am/df