A bridge that over passes the Awash River and which is part of the Ethiopia-Djibouti road is open for traffic.

The finance for the structure came from the aid arm of the Japanese Government. According to the communication officer at Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the project costed the Agency 240 Million Birr.

Melaku noted, ““The request of the financing came from the government of Ethiopia and we raised the financing following the request, as the road is a main route of trade and investment for Ethiopia.’’

The bridge is located in the Afar State and it is located five kilometers from Awash Town while stretching for 145 Meters. Previously there was a 40 year bridge which allowed only one vehicle to cross at a time. Nonetheless the new bridge is 9.5 Meters and includes a 935 Meters new road that links the main road at either end. Unlike its old compatriot, the new bridge enables two vehicles to pass simultaneously.

The firm that undertook the construction of the bridge is Soto Kijo while the consultant was Central Construction. Both firms are Japanese firms and the project was their first in Ethiopia.

According to Ethiopian Roads Authority (ERA) both bridges will stay open for traffic while the old one needs some minor maintenance. ERA also noted there are 2,200 vehicles that use the route daily.

ERA’s Project Engineer Tewdros Woldegiorgis, who oversaw the construction of the bridge, explained it was back in March 2012 the construction of the bridge begun.

“Now we are in the final stage, painting road lines. The project will be fully finalised by the start of January 2015,” Tewdros added.

Source: Fortune