In a recent report summarizing the 2023 investments, the General Directorate for National Roads and Motorways (GDDKiA) revealed that drivers will be able to travel the entire S61 Via Baltica route by the end of 2024. The completion of the Łomża bypass, featuring a new bridge over the Narew River in Podlaskie, remains the last hurdle.
The expressway S61 is a crucial segment of the I Pan-European Transport Corridor Via Baltica, connecting Poland with Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Finland. Stretching approximately 220 km from Ostrowia Mazowiecki in the Mazowieckie region through Podlaskie (Śniadowo, Łomża, Kolno), a portion of Warmińsko-Mazurskie (Ełk region) to Suwałki and the Lithuanian border in Budzisko.
GDDKiA reported that in 2023, an additional 49 km of the S61 route were opened to traffic, including the Łomża Zachód junction, linking the Łomża Południe-Łomża Zachód sections, the Ełk Południe-Wysokie stretch (Kalinowo junction) in Warmińsko-Mazurskie, and the Ostrów Mazowiecka Północ-Śniadowo section in Mazowieckie.
“While reconstruction of the viaduct over the S8 railway line before the Ostrów Mazowiecka Północ junction and surface paving on the road are still underway,” GDDKiA reported.
The final 13 km section of the S61 from the Łomża Zachód junction to the Kolno junction is set to be completed in 2024. The Łomża bypass is part of this section, aiming to be open to traffic, with one lane of the Narew River bridge accessible by mid-2024, allowing heavy trucks to bypass Łomża on the S61 route to the Lithuanian border.
GDDKiA emphasized that the complete standard dual-carriageway express road for the Łomża bypass is scheduled for 2025.
Furthermore, construction began in the fall of 2023 in Podlaskie on three initial segments of the international transport corridor Via Carpatia, totaling 39.3 km. The S19 construction spans Haćki-Bielsk Podlaski, Bielsk Podlaski-Boćki, and Boćki-Malewice. The combined value of these three projects is nearly PLN 979 million.
The Via Carpatia route, running from the Lithuanian border in Budzisko through Białystok, Lublin to the Slovak border in Barwinek, will cover approximately 700 km. GDDKiA highlighted that it will traverse five voivodeships: Podlaskie, Warmińsko-Mazurskie, Mazowieckie, Lubelskie, and Podkarpackie (Lublin already connected to Rzeszów). All these developments align with the Government Road Construction Program until 2030.
Since January 2023, work has been ongoing on the S19 section from the Belarusian border in Kuźnica to Sokółka. GDDKiA stated that earthworks are concluding, and construction of engineering structures has commenced. This S19 section is expected to be operational between 2024 and 2025.
The road authorities have also selected the most advantageous bids (pending contract signing) for the design and construction of other Podlaskie sections of S19: Sokółka-Czarna Białostocka, Czarna Białostocka-Białystok Północ, and Białystok Północ-Dobrzyniewo. Covering over 46 km, these projects are valued at almost PLN 1.5 billion. Contracts with builders are anticipated in the first quarter of 2024, and construction is planned for 2025-2028.
Preparatory work will continue for the construction of additional S19 sections south of Białystok.
In 2023, construction also began on the first two bypasses in Podlaskie as part of the government’s program to build a hundred bypasses. Single-carriageway bypasses for Sztabin and Suchowola on the current road No. 8 from Białystok to Augustów, which is intended to become an express road in the future, are expected to conclude in the second quarter of 2025. The tender for the Białobrzegów bypass is ongoing, and preparations are underway for the Zambrowo bypass (from the side of the DK 63 and 66) and Augustów (from the side of the DK 16).”
The extensive developments underscore Poland’s commitment to enhancing its road infrastructure, promoting connectivity, and fostering international transport corridors for economic growth and regional integration.