We Will Have a Safety Officer for Every Tunnel, Says Sanosyan

The government approved the amendments to the law on "Automobile Roads" during its meeting today, January 25. Presenting the bill, the Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructures, Gnel Sanosyan, noted that the goal of this project is to increase the safety level of the road network and tunnels and to reduce potential risks.

“A number of regulations are set for this purpose. The first regulation pertains to road safety audits, making the conduct of such audits a mandatory requirement. We have experience with roads related to international projects, and now it will also be mandatory for interstate, republican, and local roads. To comply with this requirement, we have established qualification requirements for auditors, ensuring that qualified individuals, who also pay a certain fee, are involved. It is important that the auditor has no ties to the design, authorship, technical supervision, or construction companies,” he said.

According to Sanosyan, the first phase is expected to start in July 2025 for interstate roads, followed sequentially by republican and local roads.

The second amendment aims to create a unified and integrated management system for road safety conditions, which will encompass information gathering on traffic accidents, casualties, and injuries, as well as violations of traffic rules and road analysis.