This bridge finally corrects what passes for a geographical aberration: the “foreign” enclave which cuts the Dalmatian coast in two to access the sea. In fact, this enclave has existed since 1690 ( Ragusa, the current Dubrovnik, was then a great maritime power) and it was part of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina from the constitution of (the former) Yugoslavia by Marshal Tito in 1946. A lot of water has flowed under the bridges since…
Croatia joined the European Union in 2013; two borders have therefore stiffened access to the small seaside town of Neum, the Bosnian, to access Dubrovnik or Split, the beautiful Croatians.
55 m high guy wires
Borders, traffic jams, endless queues… both people and tourists exasperated by the formalities of crossing have dreamed of a bridge spanning the pretty bay of Mali Ston. It was inaugurated a year ago, but its access, via land, required a lot of infrastructure. To date, its commissioning is said to be imminent. 2.4 km long, magnified by stays 55 m high and equipped with 4 traffic lanes, the Peljesac bridge connects the peninsula to the Dalmatian coast.
And abandons the enclave of Bosnia and Herzegovina to its sad fate. No more tourist spin-offs due to obligatory crossings, no more customs clearance taxes, no more car ferries avoiding the “foreign” mainland for motorists… But the seaside resort of Neum will keep its holidaymakers operating on the economy, because the services in Bosnia Herzegovina are significantly cheaper than in Croatia.
80% funded by the EU
This is where the little story of the bridge makes you smile. Would the European Union have committed to this financing knowing that China would be part of it? Unlikely, because the involvement of this country in the Balkans has irritated it to the highest degree for quite some time already (tgv between Budapest and Belgrade. motorway in Montenegro towards Serbia). But Croatia played fair, it made a call for tenders and it was the China road and bridge corporation that. took it away. As well as the challenge of having completed, on time, a huge infrastructure project within the EU. And it’s not nothing, the future will tell.
