This is the first statistics showing how much the central and local authorities spent on transport infrastructure.
Out of this amount only EUR3.7 billion or 13.5% went to highways and railroads. This surprisingly low amount when it comes to highways can be explained by the fact that National Statistics Institute data only cover the amounts billed in those years by the companies building or designing highways and railroads, its representatives said.
In other words, the billed value is lower than actually delivered, with the rest to be settled later. Arrears are an extremely important problem in the construction business, because delayed payments to construction companies amount to about EUR0.8 billion, according to the data provided by the Romanian Association of Construction Companies, ARACO early in April.
“The figures show the poor quality of the road transport infrastructure, which leads to a low percentage of the money being allocated to new highways,” said Laurentiu Plosceanu, ARACO chairman.
Although highways accounted for merely 7.3% of the transport infrastructure works in the last six years, road infrastructure, which also includes county and national roads, has absorbed most money in the past few years. Road, street, bridges or tunnel works amounted to more than EUR20 billion in 2008-2012 (there is no information about the value of the 2013 works).
Railroads got about EUR1.7 billion in the last six years and waterways, harbor structures and the like got EUR2.4 billion, according to ZF estimates. Airport runways got the least amount of money, a little more than EUR60 million.
(English version by Loredana Fratila-Cristescu)