S61. Łomża bypass. Via Baltica. The section has been put into operation

From Monday, drivers can now drive on one road of the Łomża bypass on the S61 Via Baltica road.

Making the Łomża bypass available to drivers, along with a new crossing through the Narew River valley, means that the entire Via Baltica route from Ostrów Mazowiecka to the border with Lithuania in Budzisko, and transit traffic was diverted from Łomża – he emphasizes General Directorate for National Roads and Motorways in Białystok.

The left, western line of the Łomża bypass has been put into operation, the right one is under construction.

The Łomża bypass is a nearly 13-kilometer section of S61 from the Łomża Zachód road junction to the Kolno junction. Since traffic in both directions is on one road, the speed limit is 80 km/h and overtaking is prohibited. “However, there are no tonnage restrictions, which means that heavy vehicles can use the bypass. The Nowogród and Łomża Północ junctions are also closed to traffic, and will be put into operation together with the second roadway in 2025.” – informed GDDKiA.

Politicians and local government officials participating in the opening of the bypass emphasized that the opening of this investment was the departure of trucks from Łomża, which had been awaited for years, and was also important for the neighboring communes. It was emphasized that the nuisance caused by trucks was great. Referring to data from the General Traffic Measurement for 2020/2021, GDDKiA reported that 14.4 thousand people traveled on national road No. 61 on the section from the borders of Łomża to the town of Kisielnica. vehicles daily, and there were long traffic jams in and outside the city.

– The thirteenth section of Via Baltiki, 13 kilometers long. It's hard not to say that this is lucky thirteen for the city of Łomża and the surrounding area. Trucks will disappear, these difficulties, these exhaust fumes that make life so difficult will disappear – said the director of GDDKiA in Białystok, Wojciech Borzuchowski.

Jacek Piorunek, member of the board of the Podlaskie Voivodeship, added that this is a “memorable” moment for Łomża. – We can announce today that Łomża is a city free from trucks, from streams of heavy vehicles, from traffic jams, and from air mixed with exhaust gases – he said.

As part of the construction of the bypass, the longest bridge in Podlasie was also built. The crossing over the Narew valley is 1.2 km long. “It enables collision-free passage of the S61 expressway over the Narew valley and the river itself. The space under the facility serves as a crossing for animals. There will also be four internal roads of the Piątnica commune and a utility crossing on the flood embankment,” GDDKiA reported.

The Łomża bypass is being built by Intercor (contract value PLN 713 million), which took over the contract in 2022 from the previous contractor, whose contract was terminated in 2021. As part of the investment, in addition to the bypass, a single-lane section of national road No. 64 with a length of almost 7 km will be built. from the Łomża Północ junction to Elżbiecin. “Intersections in the form of roundabouts will be built in the area of ​​Marianowo (with the existing DK61) and in the area of ​​Elżbiecin (with the existing DK64),” road engineers informed.

GDDKiA data shows that the S61 Łomża Zachód-Kolno section was financed as part of the larger S61 Łomża Zachód-Stawiski section. PLN 440.4 million for this purpose came from the EU from the Infrastructure and Environment program. In 2024, a contract was signed for the second phase of the project using money from the European Funds for Infrastructure, Climate, Environment 2021-2027 (FEnIKS) program for the section from the Łomża Zachód and Kolno junction. PLN 245.9 million comes from the EU for this purpose.

Via Baltica is an international transport corridor connecting the Baltic countries with Western Europe. Its length in Poland is 220 km.

Construction history of Via Baltica (S61):
– December 19, 2013 – the Stawiska bypass (one road DK61, length 6.5 km) put into operation. The second roadway opened together with the S61 Kolno – Stawiski section on August 9, 2021 – November 7, 2014 – Augustów bypass opened for use, including 12.7 km of the S61 dual carriageway expressway from the Raczki junction to Suwałki. – November 13, 2015 – Szczuczyn bypass (one road DK61, length 8 km) opened to traffic. The second roadway was opened on May 15, 2020 – April 13, 2019 – the Suwałki bypass opened to traffic (12.8 km). – July 14, 2021 – the Śniadowo section – Łomża Południe junction put into operation (17 km). – August 9, 2021 – sections Kolno – Stawiski (16.4 km) and Stawiski – Szczuczyn (18 km) made available to drivers. – December 31, 2021 – the Wysokie – Raczki section (20.2 km) opened for use. – September 13, 2022 – the Szczuczyn – Ełk Południe section (23.3 km) opened to traffic. – December 22, 2022 – the Suwałki – Budzisko section (24 km) opened to traffic. – June 2, 2023 – section Łomża Południe – Łomża Zachód (7.3 km) put into operation after the completion of the construction of the Łomża Zachód junction. – August 12, 2023 – the Ełk Południe – Kalinowo section (19.5 km) opened for use. – October 13, 2023 – the Ostrów Mazowiecka Północ – Śniadowo section (19.5 km) opened to traffic. – September 30, 2024 – opening of one road of the Łomża bypass (12.9 km).