Government Plans to Construct a New Tunnel in Dilijan

The financial and technical assessments for the renovation of the current Dilijan tunnel have shown that it is more feasible to construct a new one. This was stated by Kristine Galachyan, Deputy Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure, during a joint session of the National Assembly’s standing committees.

“We have planned to start the design works for two major new tunnels. We are talking about the Pushkin and Dilijan tunnels, and their condition is unsatisfactory both from a safety standpoint and other perspectives. We have utilized savings from loan programs and commissioned an international designer for the design works. We have made a decision that the Pushkin tunnel must be completely restored. As for the Dilijan tunnel, we have made an important decision to construct a new one. The financial and technical assessments demonstrated the feasibility of building a new tunnel,” she noted.

Galachyan indicated that the design documents would be ready by the end of this year at the latest. According to her, the construction of the Dilijan tunnel is expected to begin in early 2025. The construction of both tunnels is planned to be implemented through international programs. Galachyan assured that high safety standards will be adopted, with great attention given to ventilation, fire safety, lighting, and evacuation systems.