The section of the highway between Poprikuš and Nemila, together with part of the Nemila – Vranduk subdivision, is closed to traffic due to the continuation of work on the connection with the section of the highway that is still under construction and that connects from the Zenica north toll booth.
For this reason, drivers are again directed to the M-17 highway, which will be the main traffic connection between Zenica and Žepč in the coming period.
The route, which had been in operation for less than seven months, was closed in order to continue work on its final connection with the rest of Corridor 5C.
According to the current dynamics of the work, it is expected that this section will remain closed during the coming months, and taking into account the intensity of the work and the challenges on the construction site, it is not excluded that it could be reopened only after 2026.
On the 5.5-kilometer Poprikusa-Nemila section, there is also the Bosna tunnel, once known as the Golubinja tunnel, 3.6 kilometers long, and in addition to the tunnel, numerous bridges and viaducts were built, which represented one of the most technically demanding structures on this section.
The construction of the currently closed section Poprikusa – Nemila was contracted in November 2020, the works were performed by a Turkish company, while the supervision was carried out by an Italian company.
On the Nemila – Vranduk subsection, approximately four kilometers of the route were opened to traffic earlier, while work on tunnels, bridges and the entire route is still being carried out on the remaining part. It is precisely the work on connecting this section with the continuation of the highway that is the reason for its new closure.
Although the closure will temporarily lengthen the journey and again increase the load on the M-17 main road, with the completion of the entire section, a much faster and safer traffic connection between Zenica and Žepč is expected.
Also, the Federal authorities claimed that the highway with this entire section and the one from Žepče to Tešnj will be opened by the end of 2026. Given the financing problems on certain sections and stalled works, it will be interesting to see if this will be feasible.
However, citizens will feel the greatest effect only after the Ozimica – Medakovo – Putnikovo Brdo section is completed and put into traffic, when the Žepča area will be fully connected by the highway to Doboj, Banja Luka, Gradiška and further to the Republic of Croatia.
It is important to emphasize that the works on the section Poprikusa – Ozimica, which directly connects to this route, have not yet started.
For this reason, even after the completion of the current works, drivers will still have to cross certain parts of the journey on the M-17 highway until the construction of the missing sections of Corridor Vc, it says. Klix.
