Road traffic closed on Valea Oltului, during the day, between July 8 and August 9

Road traffic will be closed during the day in the Olt Valley between July 8 and August 9, due to clearing works necessary for the construction of lot 2 of the Sibiu-Pitesti Highway, Sorin Grindeanu, Minister of Transport and Infrastructure, said yesterday.

Sorin Grindeanu stated: "I will go on Friday (ed. - tomorrow) with the general director of CNAIR to the site. You know that we have this lot 2 of the Sibiu-Pitesti Highway, which involves deforestation, which has been approved, which must be done, if we want to build this highway. If we don't want to do it, we don't close the traffic on Valea Oltului, i.e. on DN 7. The fact is that at this moment the clearing works cannot be done under traffic, because it would endanger road safety and the lives of those driving on DN 7. No one can assume this. That is why, between July 8 and August 9, these absolutely necessary works will be done to build the Sibiu-Pitesti highway. Of course, I expect "connoisseurs" to criticize this. There is no other option. We tried to find other options, but we are talking about high heights, reaching up to 70 meters, where the trees will be cut, which have a high risk of reaching the roadway and endangering traffic safety. So during the mentioned period, CNAIR together with the Romanian Police will transmit the alternative routes so that during the day we have them secured, the traffic being closed during the day. During the night, it will be reopened every day. I think it is the only solution. We asked the company carrying out the respective works to have great mobilization so as to complete them by August 9".

The closure of the main route to the west of the country in the height of summer could significantly affect both holidaymakers planning to transit the area and transporters. They would have as alternatives only Prahova Valley and DN 1A Cheia-Săcele, Bucharest - Braşov route, where there are already restrictions for trucks on the weekend and during the day from Monday to Friday. This situation could lead to increased travel times and congestion of these alternative routes, negatively affecting both the comfort of travelers and the efficiency of freight transport. In addition, it could create additional inconvenience in the areas affected by the diverted traffic. According to traffic data, on the sector between Râmnicu Vâlcea and Veştem of DN7, the daily average varies between 23,118 reference vehicles and 63,353 reference vehicles.