An important road widening project is starting in the Republic of Bashkortostan, part of the Russian Federation. The contractor, Khotkovsky Avtomost, will widen a 19.65km stretch of the M5 route from a single lane in either direction at present so that it will have two lanes in either direction. The work will improve transport to and from the city of Ufa, home to one of the largest truck manufacturers in the Russian Federation. The work also includes building two new interchanges as well as a bridge and an overpass section. The contract is worth US$144.7 million. The Republic of Bashkortostan lies to the east of Moscow and just to the north of Kazakhstan. The M5/E30 route provides an important highway connection running eastwards through Kazakhstan.
Meanwhile the contractor Uralmostostroy is to construct a bridge in Ufa itself. The contract to build the 689m bridge is worth $52 million. The work includes building the structure as well as installing drainage and traffic monitoring and control technology. The work is due for completion by the end of 2021.
