Maritsa motorway

The Maritsa motorway (Bulgarian: Автомагистрала „Марица“, Avtomagistrala "Maritsa"), designated A4, is a motorway in Bulgaria, part of the Pan-European Corridor IV, between the Trakia motorway (A1), at the town of Chirpan, and Kapitan Andreevo, at the Turkish border.

Maritsa motorway
Автомагистрала „Марица“
Maritsa motorway highlighted in red and yellow
Route information
Part of E80
Length117 km (73 mi)
Major junctions
West end A1 near Chirpan
East end D.100 near Kapitan Andreevo
Location
Major citiesDimitrovgrad, Haskovo, Svilengrad
Highway system
Motorways in Bulgaria

The planned completion of the last remaining stretch of the motorway was in 2013,[1] but a delay occurred[2] and the complete motorway enterеd service in October 2015.[3]

It is named after the Maritsa River.

History

In October 2010, a 31 km section of the Maritsa motorway between the towns of Harmanli and Lyubimets officially opened to traffic.[4] The new interchange at Kapitan Petvo Voyvoda neighbourhood of Svilengrad, providing direct connection with the border crossing to Greece, also opened in October 2010. During construction, 6000-year-old Neolithic remains were found near Haskovo.[5] The bypass of Kapitan Andreevo village in the border area entered service in August 2014.[6] The construction of Haskovo-Harmanli section began in July 2011 and was completed on 28 May 2015.[7] A 8.6 kilometres (5.3 mi) long second carriageway near Svilengrad was inaugurated on 7 June 2015, while the other carriageway had been built during the 1980s.[8] The last remaining section, between Chirpan and Haskovo, entered service on 29 October 2015.[3]

The construction of the Chirpan-Haskovo and the Haskovo-Harmanli sections of the motorway were co-funded by EU funds allocated for Bulgaria,[9] while a small section at the Turkish border was co-funded with a loan from the IBRD.[10] Its route runs parallel to the existing major road 8, which is mainly two-lane and carried much of the road freight to and from Turkey and the Middle East. The completion of the Maritsa motorway attempts to reduce this congestion.

Exits
Exit km Destinations Notes
0 (Sofia, Plovdiv, Stara Zagora, Yambol, Burgas) In service
36.6 Haskovo, Dimitrovgrad

E85

 In service
66 Simeonovgrad, Harmanli In service
70.3 Topolovgrad, Harmanli In service
88 Lyubimets In service
99 Svilengrad-west; In service
102 Svilengrad In service
114 Kapitan Andreevo In service
117 Kapitan Andreevo Border Crossing; Edirne D100 , Istanbul In service

References
  1. "State allocates 32.5M leva for Maritsa motorway". Sofiaecho.com. 18 March 2010.
  2. "През 2014 г. завършват "Марица", лот 4 на "Струма", обхода на Враца и Кърджали – Подкова". infrastructure.bg. Archived from the original on 2016-04-16. Retrieved 2014-01-11.
  3. "След 36 години АМ "Марица" най-после е готова!". plovdiv24.bg (in Bulgarian). Retrieved 29 October 2015.
  4. "Bulgaria Opens 31 KM of Maritsa Highway: Bulgaria Opens 31 KM of Maritsa Highway". Novinite.com. 2 October 2010.
  5. "Bulgaria: Bulgarian Archaeologists Stumble Upon 8000-Year-Old Skeleton". Novinite.com. 24 October 2010.
  6. "Пуснаха магистрала "Марица" към "Капитан Андреево"" (in Bulgarian). vesti.bg. 14 August 2014.
  7. "Магистрала "Марица" от днес е с 34 км по-дълга" (in Bulgarian). Dnevnik. 28 May 2015.
  8. "От днес се пуска в движение дясното платно на автомагистрала "Марица"" (in Bulgarian). Dnevnik. 7 June 2015.
  9. "Bulgaria: EU Approves Bulgaria's Major Operative Programs". Novinite.com. 7 November 2007.
  10. "СИМЕОН ДЯНКОВ ЩЕ НАПРАВИ ИНСПЕКЦИЯ НА ГКПП "КАПИТАН АНДРЕЕВО"". Ministry of finance. Archived from the original on 2016-08-14. Retrieved 2014-01-11.
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