gradsko for homepage

Hill International Supports New Expressway to Improve Pan-European Corridor X Infrastructure

Hill International, Inc. (Hill), in a joint venture with Egis International, is providing project and construction management to the Central Financing and Contracting Department (CFCD) of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) for the construction of the new Gradsko Interchange Drenovo Expressway of road Corridor X-d. Running between Salzburg, Austria and Thessaloniki, Greece, the corridor passes through Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, and Macedonia. The project increases Hill’s support in developing other Pan-European corridors, and marks political transformation and reform for the country.

Situated on the Balkan Peninsula in Southeast Europe, FYROM has a population of approximately 2 million, with a quarter of the population living in the nation’s capital and largest city, Skopje. The country is a member of the United Nations and Council of Europe, and currently has Candidate Country status with the European Union (EU). The EU Candidate Country status provides FYROM with access to Pre-Accession (IPA II) funding support for the project. IPA II provides pre-accession funds to help current and potential candidate countries lead political and economic reforms, as well as progressively align with the EU’s rules, standards, policies, and practices on the path towards EU membership.

FYROM has main transport routes that connect different regions of the Balkan Peninsula. Particularly important is the connection from north to south of the country through Vardar Valley, which connects Greece with the rest of Europe. The favorable geographic location of FYROM contributed to the development of international traffic on two Trans National Axes, North-South (Corridor X) and East-West (Corridor VIII), linked to the Trans European Transport Networks.

To support modernization efforts, FYROM launched the Sector Operational Program Transport 2014-2020 IPA II project to construct a new Expressway from Gradsko to Interchange Drenovo with a total length of 15.5 km. Work includes construction of 5 new viaducts with lengths from 70 m to 200 m, 2 interchanges, 4 underpasses, 4 overpasses, several box and pipe culverts, dewatering and posting of traffic signs, and road marking. The Rosoman Interchange on km 19+400 will function as a traffic distribution scheme, redirecting traffic among the newly designed expressway and the local road, Rosoman-Krusica. The Gradsko Interchange on km 25+700 will connect the expressway with Motorway E-75 Gevgelija – Tabanovce. The two-year, €23 million project is 85% co-financed by the EU and will break ground in January 2018.

Hill will support the project from pre-construction through closeout, providing such services as design support, project and construction management, project controls, quality assurance, budget and schedule management, reporting, and document control. The team will liaise with the Final Beneficiary – Public Enterprise for National Road and the Contacting Authority – Central Financing and Contracting Department (CFCD) to identify special project needs; confirm compliance with FIDIC Red Book Conditions of Contract and specific scope, quality, budget, and time components; minimize change orders; and verify documentation for issuing the Taking-Over Certificate.

With its expanding presence on the Balkan Peninsula, Hill supported other major motorway developments, including Kosovo’s two major projects: Route 7, completed in 2013, also known as the Morine – Merdare Motorway, the primary motorway artery running from the border with Albania to Pristina, the capital of the Republic of Kosovo, and subsequently to the border with Serbia. The motorway connects many of the country’s main cities and economic centers with the Albania Adriatic ports. Route No. 7 is a key component of South East Europe’s core regional transport network, connecting the Pan-European Road Corridor X in Serbia to the Port of Durres on the Adriatic Coast in Albania. The Morine – Merdare Motorway has a total length of approximately 117 km.

The currently under construction Route 6 is a key component of the main South East European transportation network. Once constructed, it will connect Skopje with Pan-European Corridor X.

In Romania, Hill also supported the development of the Pan-European Corridor IV by supervising the construction of the 23-kilometer motorway that serves as a by-pass for the City of Constanta – the country’s largest port at the Black Sea. One of Hill’s current assignments in Romania is also on Corridor IV, where Hill is supervising the construction of the 21 km-long Lot 3 of the Lugoj – Deva Motorway.

Hill International, with approximately 3,000 professionals in more than 50 offices worldwide, provides program management, project management, construction management, and other consulting services to clients in a variety of market sectors. Engineering News-Record magazine recently ranked Hill as the eighth-largest construction management firm in the United States. For more information on Hill, please visit our website at www.hillintl.com.

Share

Up Next

View All arrow_forward