Asked whether the road carriers will suffer because of Lars highway closed, similarly as in the previous summer, the President of the Association of International Road Carriers of Armenia Herbert Hambardzumyan replied that the highway has closed in Georgian part to escape great landslides.
Let us remind you that yesterday the Ministry of Transport, Communication and Information Technologies, citing the Roads Department of Georgia, has announced that Stepantsminda-Lars highway will be closed for several days because of the cleanings of the rocky slopes on the sideway of the road. The road will be closed in the course of 7:00 AM to 18:00 PM, for 2 hours.
Mr. Hambardzumyan who has a direct connection with the Georgian side, told that those 2 hours will not invoke essential problems and the carriers will not suffer: “Traffic jams are possible in the Georgian side, but if the Russian side works well, no traffic jams will be in place. Anyway, some traffic jams appear there connected with fruit season, but no serious issues will be present.”
Asked whether there is any certainty in the issue regarding conversations on alternatives to Lars road, this time implying the option of the road passing through Abkhazia, Herbert Hambardzumyan replied, that he was assured “The shortest road connecting Russia from Yerevan to Moscow is Lars. The shortest, fastest and most beneficial road is Lars exactly and it will require alternatives solely when Lars road faces force majeure situations.”
In Mr. Hambardzumyan’s opinion, Abkhazia road is not real: “Who will let those heavyweight machines pass nearby Sochi? Will Russia allow those heavy trucks to pass near Sochi resort? It is wrong to presume that it may happen, this mechanism will not work.”
According to Mr. Hambardzumyan, the most correct alternative is South Ossetia road: “That road bypasses Lars road if Lars faces a force majeure situation, South Ossetia road is an alternative, well, it is longer by 80 kilometers, but we can pass it by guidance and payment, if this was possible through negotiations, it would be good. It is the will of the road carriers, but it is a strict political issue.”
Lusine BUDAGHYAN
