Armenia north-south highway route

Plans are being drawn up in Armenia for the new North-South Highway project. Measuring some 556km in all, the project is expected to cost in excess of US$2 billion to construct, although there it is possible that the final pricetag will be somewhat higher. The country's Ministry of Transport says that the southern section of the highway between Artashat and Megri will cost $1.5 billion to build alone. No final costs have yet been announced for the northern section of the route however, which will improve transport connections for the country’s capital Yerevan. As Armenia is landlocked, the new highway is important for improving the country’s transport links with neighbouring Georgia to the north, Iran to the south, Turkey to the west and Azerbaijan to the east. The route runs close to Armenia’s border with Tukey and the Turkish town of Iğdir. Meanwhile Megri in the south of Armenia is close to the border with Iran and also close to the Iranian city of Tabriz, which is connected to capital Tehran by a major highway. The construction of Armenia’s North-South Highway will provide the country with access to ports, particularly those in Georgia and Turkey on the Black Sea and to Iran on the Caspian Sea and Persian Gulf.