Romania’s National Road Infrastructure Administration (CNAIR) is considering upgrading the Transfagarasan motorway to keep it open for traffic for a longer period of time each year, CNAIR General Manager Cristian Pistol wrote in a social media post on Friday.

According to him, the modernisation project will thus become an important engine for the development of tourism in the area. The road safety works, the arrangement of parking lots and the construction of „viewpoint” areas will increase the attractiveness and comfort offered by Transfagarasan.

„Today we are celebrating 50 years since the official inauguration of the Transfagarasan national road on September 20, 1974! Transfagarasan (DN7C) is one of Romania’s strategic assets fully established by Romanian designers and builders! We have to emphasise the contribution of the Romanian engineer Chireac Avadanei to the establishment of the Transfagarasan route; he also led the design team of the Danube-Black Sea Canal, another strategic asset of Romania. The altitude at which the Transfagarasan is built (2,042 meters) places this national road on the second place in the ranking of alpine roads in Romania, after Transalpina (DN67C), which climbs up to an altitude of 2,145 meters,” Pistol wrote.

Famous for its stunning landscapes and spectacular views on clear days, Transfagaran is an important tourist spot on the map of Romania and attracts thousands of Romanian and foreign tourists every year.

Pistol added that Transfagaran is one of the indisputable proofs of the performance of Romanian engineering.

„We want to continue these performances, and in recent years, we have proven Romania’s ability to build modern infrastructure, even in difficult situations. We have exceeded the milestone of 1,000 km of high-speed roads in Romania (highway and expressway), and we still have almost 800 km in the pipeline. Contracts for the construction of more than 1,000 km are put out to tender. It is the most beneficial period for the Romanian road infrastructure, and the number of investment projects made or launched during this period is unprecedented. A developed road infrastructure has a decisive role in the development of the economy and positioning Romania in the rankings of the strong European states,” he added.

AGERPRES