On March 13 last year, Prime Minister Edi Rama boasted that the “war with the mountain” had been won and that the Murriz tunnel, part of the axis known as the Arbri Road that connects Tirana to Dibra, would be opened for normal traffic.
“The evil eye has finally broken, because all the negative energy was gathered in that tunnel and the geology of that tunnel was a horror,” Rama declared.
The next day, March 14, the tunnel was opened to traffic with a ceremony and music.
But before 10 months had passed, road users began to doubt whether the tunnel was truly ready to open.
Democratic Party MP Denisa Vata, who regularly uses the Murriz tunnel to return home from Tirana, said that on one of her trips she noticed cracks and a leaking ceiling. Concerned about safety, Vata filmed the cracks and made the footage public.
In response to concerns raised by MP Vata, the Albanian Road Authority, ARRSH, confirmed through a letter to the Parliament in early January that the section of the Arbri road in question was still unapproved, raising a new wave of alarm.
"…We inform you that the "Murrizit Tunnel", part of "segment no. 3" of the "Arbri Road" territory, is a segment that has not yet been submitted to the ARRSH for the follow-up of the approval procedures," the ARRSH letter to Vata states.
Vata told BIRN that she was scandalized by this fact.
"The Prime Minister and Mrs. Balluku inaugurated it with drums and celebration even though it is not yet approved," she said, adding that the inauguration was done for campaigning and that it was still unclear about the tunnel's safety.
According to engineer Xhevahir Ngjeqari, opening the tunnel without the approval act constitutes a serious violation of the law.
"The tunnel should not have been opened without approval. Even a chicken coop does not open without approval, because it has to do with safety," said Ngjeqari.
The director of the Albanian National Road Safety Agency, Ami Kozeli, insisted to BIRN that the tunnel was safe, despite the lack of a final inspection certificate.
"Absolutely yes. There is no (security) problem," said Kozeli, who did not answer the question of whether there was a document or decision guaranteeing the tunnel's security.
A representative of the concession company “Gjoka 87” told BIRN that the defects were due to work on the parallel safety tunnel, without questioning the tunnel’s safety. But he admitted, to some extent, that the opening had been premature.
"There was pressure from people to open the tunnel," he said, adding: "we are more comfortable working with the tunnel closed."
Construction of the 54-kilometer road connecting Tirana to Dibra began in 2018, after the company "Gjoka Konstruksion" won the concession with a bid of 33.6 billion lek.
The project envisages the construction of a two-lane road, which passes through a series of six tunnels and two high bridges. But the main work of the project, the 3.8-kilometer-long Qafë e Murrizit tunnel, has stalled due to problems.
The road was scheduled to be completed in April 2022, but due to problems in the construction of the Murriz tunnel, the Ministry of Infrastructure extended the deadline for the concession company “Gjoka 87” several times in a row. The latest agreement between the parties stipulated that the works should be completed in May 2025.
Two months before the deadline, the tunnel was opened to traffic and the prime minister declared it completed. But the parties now admit that the road works are not finished.
Asked about the lack of approval, the head of the ARRSH, Ami Kozeli, told BIRN that this process could only be done after the segment is completed.
“I understand the politics, but approval has nothing to do with the accessibility of the axis,” he said, referring to Vata’s positions. According to him, approval is done when all the works are completed.
“There is still unfinished work there, but that doesn't make it inaccessible,” Kozeli insisted.
The company representative also told BIRN on condition of anonymity that the works had not yet been completed.
“Arbri Road is divided into several segments; segment three, because the auxiliary tunnel is not finished yet, cannot be taken over,” he said, explaining that the cracks and problems in the open tunnel were precisely the result of the ongoing works.
“It is the pressure coming from the parallel pipe, from the work being done in the auxiliary tunnel and there are extreme pressures and it has caused defects in the asphalt. They do not pose a structural risk,” he stressed.
The Murriz Tunnel is not the first to be put into use in this way. Similar roads have been inaugurated and closed after inauguration due to rush hour, mainly related to electoral campaign cycles.
For specialists in the field, the tunnel should not have been opened without completing all the work so that it is completely safe for users.
Engineer Xhevahir Ngjeqari told BIRN after seeing images of the damage that a clear analysis needs to be made of what it is and how severe it is.
"Such problems occur in construction and are calculated, but it must be understood whether they are falling plaster or damage to the structure. If it is simply plaster, it is a big deal, but if there is damage to the structure, it is a problem," said Ngjeqari.
However, he is of the opinion that the approval is an essential act and that the opening of the tunnel in its absence should not have occurred.
“Who bears legal responsibility if something happens in the tunnel,” he asks, while insisting that the ARA must provide written guarantees that the tunnel is safe.
The representative of the company "Gjoka 87" insisted that the tunnel is safe and that they were taking measurements every three days with special instruments to understand the situation.
According to him, the auxiliary tunnel will be completed in February if there are no surprises, and after that, interventions will be made to repair the damage, diverting traffic.
Asked if the tunnel had a document giving the green light to circulate, the company representative said he was not aware, but that "there definitely must be one."
Reporter.al
