Connecting Banja Luka and Belgrade with a modern road connection, through the territory of the Republic of Srpska and the Brčko District, is a strategic, national project and the realization of the dream of all of us who live on this side of the Drina River.

This is the message of the Acting Director of the Public Enterprise "Autoputevi Republike Srpske" d.o.o. Banja Luka, Radovan Višković, who, while appearing on the show "Centar dana" on Alternative Television Banja Luka, said that the implementation of this project is already at an advanced stage, primarily on the section from Rača to Bijeljina.

Director Višković expressed his satisfaction with the fact that the Brčko District has also initiated procedures for the implementation of the project to build a little more than 30 kilometers of highway on its territory, which will be part of the future Belgrade - Banja Luka highway.

-We are building a highway from Vukosavlje to Brcko and from Bijeljina to Brcko, so it is of utmost importance to us that the District authorities build a road on their territory - said Director Višković, recalling that the Republika Srpska, or rather the Public Enterprise "Autoputevi Republike Srpske", has contracted the construction of approximately 112 new kilometers of highways on its territory.

In the next three to four years, said Višković, the Republika Srpska can count on twice the mileage compared to the existing 111 kilometers, which is currently managed by the Public Enterprise "Autoputevi Republike Srpske".

-It is a serious step forward to build such a mileage of highways in a very short period of time, and we are witnesses that the existing 111 kilometers were built over almost 20 years. Therefore, it is clear that the dynamics have significantly accelerated – explained Višković, adding that Serbia also influenced everything with its decision to build roads and highways towards the border with Republika Srpska.

Director Višković reiterated that in the direction from Banja Luka and Gradiška to Belgrade, only one section of the highway remained uncontracted, namely the one on Corridor Five c, from Doboj to Vukosavlje, with a length of some 35 kilometers. PE “Autoputevi Republike Srpske” has entered into negotiations with the World Bank, which has expressed interest in financing this project, and is now preparing documentation and monitoring the company’s operations so that the potential financier can be convinced of the real situation in terms of finances and liquidity.

-When many people bypassed Republika Srpska, the World Bank was there - recalled Višković, adding that he received assurances from the outgoing director that the World Bank would support the loan agreement for the construction of one of the most frequented sections on Corridor Five c.

Director Višković also spoke about the preparation of other projects, on which the teams of the Public Enterprise "Autoputevi Republike Srpske" work daily. Among these projects is the expressway from Bijeljina, via Zvornik and Milić to Podromania, as well as the highway project on the so-called "Adriatic-Ionian Highway", which leads from Italy to Greece, and in part would lead through the territory of Republika Srpska, more precisely, through Herzegovina. Likewise, the public procurement procedure for the design and technical documentation of the expressway from Trebinje to Gacko should be carried out soon, which would also solve the issue of connecting Gacko and Foča and further towards Višegrad with a lane for slow vehicles.

With all these projects, the Republika Srpska would gain an impressive number of kilometers of modern, first-class roads, which in itself opens up new business opportunities and provides a chance for economic and business development.

Speaking about the activities on the implementation of the Banja Luka - Prijedor highway construction project, Director Višković recalled that this is a kind of pilot project, in which a Chinese company is building a highway in the Republika Srpska through a concession. Despite certain difficulties at the very beginning of the implementation, as he pointed out, the Chinese partner provided financing in the fall of last year, which created the conditions for more intensive work and progress in the implementation.

Director Višković expressed his satisfaction with the decision of the competent authorities in the joint bodies of Bosnia and Herzegovina to temporarily open the newly built bridge and border crossing at Gradipka, expressing hope that this is, in fact, a permanent decision. He reiterated that the bridge in Gradiška is one of the most long-awaited projects, as construction has been underway for almost 15 years, and it was completed in 2022. Due to the arbitrariness of one man, the bridge and the newly built crossings on the Republika Srpska and Croatian sides have not been in use in recent months, which has caused direct financial damage to the PE "Autoputevi Republike Srpska".