Construction of the New Section of Motorway M3 from EU Funding24 August 2009
Drawing down the highest possible ratio of EU funds is essential to be able to implement as many investments as possible in Hungary. The Government is reassessing the priorities of specific EU projects to be able to use Community funding within the shortest space of time. This is what happened recently in the case of the project envisaged along the Pest County section of Highway 4 and the Government adopted a similar decision at the Cabinet meeting held on 19 August. Hungary will be able to use the funding requested for the development of Motorway M7 to implement a development of a similar magnitude, namely, to construct the new Nyíregyháza-Vásárosnamény section of Motorway M3.
In accordance with the Government’s decision, it has now become possible to launch another priority project during 2009 within the framework of the Transport Operational Programme. The construction of this highway will bring Szabolcs–Szatmár–Bereg County closer to Hungarian and European "currents" from an economic perspective, as well as in terms of access time. This helps close the development gap experienced in the county and the region in relation to more highly developed counties and regions and also provides safe and fast connections to the region for transit traffic.
The objective of the Motorway M3 Nyíregyháza-Vásárosnamény project is to improve connections between the north-eastern part of the country and other regions, as well as Budapest. This new 45.9 kilometre-long section will ensure macro-regional connections for settlements in Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg County, whilst on the other hand it will create a direct connection with towns and counties across the border.
This new section of Motorway M3 is also expected to bring about long-term impacts, namely, the efficient rerouting of international transit traffic, improving local and international access, shortening travel time, reducing negative environmental impacts, improving road transport services and safety standards. The competitiveness of the region will consequently improve, which equally helps raise employment levels.