Kazakhstan, Astana, Oct. 30 /Trend D.Mukhtarov/
Large-scale construction on the Almaty-Khorgos highway in Kazakhstan will begin next spring, Chairman of the Highway Committee under the Kazakh Ministry of Transport and Communications, Zamir Saginov said at a press conference in Astana on Wednesday.
"The project is being realized in line with the schedule. In total the road is divided into eight lots, four contractors have been specified. After completion of the construction in 2015 the Almaty-Khorgos highway will be transferred to the first technical category with four-lanes," Saginov said.
According to him, the contractual organizations have already launched preparatory works and mobilization of road-building equipment. In particular, works are being carried out at the area for registration of the construction sites, camps and subsurface quarries.
The 304 kilometres long Almaty-Khorgos highway is part of the international Western Europe-Western China transit corridor. The corridor's total length in Kazakhstan is 2,787 kilometres, 2,452 kilometres of which are subject to reconstruction.
Some 215 kilometres of the highway were commissioned in 2011, and 700 kilometres were commissioned in 2012 and 806 kilometres of the highway should be commissioned till late 2013.
Aside from that, 479 culvert aqueducts, 56 bridges and 13 overpasses will be built and reconstructed as part of the Western Europe-Western China project.
The completion of the corridor's construction is planned for 2015.