Unirii Underpass in downtown Bucharest will be closed to traffic this summer for repairs, District 4 mayor Daniel Băluță announced. According to him, the consolidation works are estimated to start around June 20 and end in September.

Mayor Băluță said that the underpass is classified as technical condition IV - unsatisfactory, which means that it is in an advanced state of degradation and has severe deficiencies in the resistance structure. The tunnel was built in 1986-1987 and is used daily by about 60,000 cars.

“It is the largest work of its kind implemented in the last 50 years in Bucharest, which we are starting as a matter of urgency. Measures must be taken to secure the ceiling of this passage to prevent pieces of plaster from falling on cars. Moreover, in addition to the specific consolidation activities, we will create separate traffic flows for motorcycles and cars, and we will also install a ventilation system,” Daniel Băluță said at a press conference on May 26.

“We’ll start these works around June 20, and we will finish them before the start of the school year. Road traffic will be completely restricted during this period, and I use this opportunity to apologize to the people for this discomfort,” he added.

Daniel Băluță also referred to the degraded concrete floor that covers the Dâmboviţa river and supports part of Unirii Square, which experts say needs urgent interventions on the resistance structure. He said this is an extremely complex project, and experts are currently carrying out studies to draw up a plan. “They have already started the necessary studies before we can actually get to work, and the estimate is that the expertise will take around 12-18 months,” the mayor said.

irina.marica@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Facebook/Daniel Baluta)