2023-12-26 12:44:46
Expansion of the expressway network
Written by Rainer Ackermann
Through the systematic expansion of the expressway network, more and more of the country’s residents are being integrated into the pulsating traffic and economic cycle. This also applies to the Hungarians in the Carpathian Basin.
Before Christmas, the last handover for the time being was the inauguration of a bypass road for Bátonyterenye. The small town south of Salgótarján, the county seat of Nógrád, no longer has to accommodate through traffic. The main road 21 in a north-south direction was expanded into a four-lane expressway, which ensures a smooth connection from Salgótarján to the capital Budapest via the M3 motorway. But the main road 23, which leads east into the Mátra Mountains, no longer directs transit traffic across the city. This will bring the county seat of Nógrád closer to the capital of the neighboring Heves county, Eger, via main roads 23, 24 and 25.
A new bypass road for Bátonyterenye – more and more towns will be connected to the expressway network and freed from transit traffic. Photo: MTI/ Péter Komka
Catchment radius of less than 30 minutes
In the last five years, a total of 460 km of expressways have been built across Hungary. In addition, 260 km of main roads were expanded and two dozen intersections that were previously considered accident hotspots were converted into roundabouts. A total of around 2,700 billion forints (at today’s prices, 7 billion euros) were spent on this. The Orbán government formulated the goal of bringing citizens closer to the expressway network. Three out of four cities and municipalities in the country – but already nine out of ten Hungarians – are now within a catchment radius of less than 30 minutes from an expressway. The target formulated in 2010 should be fully achieved by 2026. This includes highways that are built across borders. While there were only three such motorways in 2010, there are currently nine and soon ten motorways that connect Hungary with its neighboring countries.
The north of Transylvania is getting closer
What is also important for the mobility of Hungarians is what the traffic situation is like in the neighboring countries in the Carpathian Basin. This is particularly true for the historical region of Transylvania in Romania, where even according to official figures, more than 1 million Hungarians live today. In Transylvania, the last missing section of the A3 motorway between Kolozsvár (Cluj Napoca) and Marosvásárhely (Targu Mures) was handed over immediately before Christmas. Almost 120 km of the A3, which is planned between Brassó (Brasov) and Nagyvárad (Oradea) over more than 400 km in the north of Transylvania, has been completed. The Romanian expressway network has now grown to over 1,000 km. The Transylvania Strada connects to the M4 on the Hungarian side, which, once completed, will ensure a quick connection to the capital Budapest. The major cities of northeastern Hungary, Debrecen, Nyíregyháza and Miskolc, are also moving closer to Transylvania via the M35 and M3.
The north of Transylvania is gradually moving closer to the motherland. Photo: MTI/Gábor Kiss
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