Where the Ungheni – Chisinau – Odessa highway – the first highway connecting Romania, Moldova and Ukraine – will pass through

The idea of creating a real highway in the Republic of Moldova that would connect the European Union, Romania, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine has been discussed several times over the past few years.

The highway would connect the cities of Iasi, Ungheni and Chisinau, and then southeast Moldova and Odessa.

This article was originally published on NEWS.UNGHENI.ORG in the official language of the Republic of Moldova – Romanian and later also in Russian:

• RO – Pe unde va trece autostrada Ungheni – Odesa – prima autostradă din R. Moldova
• RU – Где пройдет автомагистраль Унгены – Одесса – первая автомагистраль соединяющая Румынию, Молдову и Украину

The project became more tangible when it was included in the grand plan of Moldova’s infrastructure reconstruction, and at the 4th Moldova Support Platform, held in Chisinau, a more detailed plan of this highway was presented with the exact route and cost estimates for its construction.

Information on the map where the first highway in Moldova will run was presented at the Moldova Support Platform by the Minister of Infrastructure and Regional Development Andrei Spînu.

The first highway connecting Romania, Moldova and Ukraine will be built in three stages:

• Unirii highway / A8 / sector Ungheni – Iasi – Târgu Mures – Ungheni municipality – Cricova road junction (Chisinau municipality);
• Chisinau municipality – Anenii Noi town / intersection of highway R2 Chisinau – Tighina – border with Ukraine;
• sector on the territory of Ukraine – European road M15 Reni – Odessa.

Thus, on the territory of the Republic of Moldova the highway project is divided into two phases – the first phase from Ungheni to Chisinau and the second phase from Chisinau to the south-east of the country.

The section of the future highway will connect the historical capital of Romania – Iasi municipality and the Western Gate of the Republic of Moldova – Ungheni municipality with the capital of the Republic of Moldova – Chisinau municipality and the largest port of Ukraine on the Black Sea – Odessa, will cross only the territory controlled by the constitutional authorities of Chisinau and will bypass the transnistrian region and Bender / Tighina city.

The section from Ungheni to Chisinau will be connected to the highway network in Romania, in particular to the A8 / Unirii / Ungheni – Iasi – Târgu Mures highway, which should connect Târgu Mures to Iasi and Ungheni, but whose construction has not yet started, and from Iasi to the A7 highway, which is currently under construction.

In fact, the highway will connect to a new highway bridge planned to be built in Ungheni over the Prut.

In general, the route of the first highway in Moldova will be integrated with several sections of national and regional roads.

Phase I

The first segment of the highway Ungheni – Chisinau – Odessa corresponds to the road section to the left of the Prut of the highway Unirii / A8 / Ungheni – Iasi – Târgu Mures, measuring about 700 meters and covering the Prut River – the ring connection R1 Ungheni – Chisinau and R16 Ungheni – Sculeni – Falesti:

The second section of the first highway in the Republic of Moldova, Ungheni – Odessa, corresponds to the national route R1 Ungheni – Chisinau until the intersection with the regional route G88 Cornesti – Condratesti – Napădăni – M5.

Ungheni – Odessa highway, section of Unirii / A8 / Ungheni – Cornesti highway

The third section of the first highway in the Republic of Moldova, Ungheni – Odessa, fully corresponds to the regional route G88 Cornesti – Condratesti – Napădăni – M5.

The section starts from the intersection with R1 Ungheni – Chisinau, has a length of 25 km and connects with the national route M5 Criva – Chisinau – Tiraspol – Pervomaysk near the village of Radeni in Calarasi district.

This section will cross one of the most underdeveloped areas of Ungheni district, which has been abandoned by the authorities since the post-World War II period, as the population of this district had a „special love” for the Soviet occupiers and resisted for 9 years the collectivization and „Sovietization” of the district through the resistance organization „Black Army”.

This section of the road will also pass through the vicinity of the village of Condratesti, considered the birthplace of the BODRUG, as more than half of its inhabitants are said to be of BODRUG ancestry, as well as the founder of the NEWS.UNGHENI.ORG portal, who also comes from Condratesti.

Ungheni – Odessa highway, Cornesti section – national highway M5

The fourth section of the highway Ungheni – Chisinau – Odessa corresponds to the national route M5 Criva – Chisinau – Tiraspol – Pervomaysk, during 70 km and at the section of intersection with the regional route G88 Cornesti – Condratesti – Napădăni – M5 and up to the road junction in Cricova (intersection of the national routes M2 – M5 – R6).

Ungheni – Odessa highway, section M5 Criva – Chisinau – Tiraspol – Pervomaysk

According to the source, the first part of the highway, the Ungheni-Chisinau stage, will end near the road junction near the town of Cricova, the intersection of the national highways M2 – M5 – R6.

The length of the first stage exceeds 100 kilometers, and the budget, according to the estimates of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Regional Development, will amount to about 1.1 billion euros.

Phase II

Section 5 of the Ungheni – Chisinau – Odessa highway, which is part of the second phase of construction, will continue to follow the national route M5 Criva – Chisinau – Tiraspol – Pervomaysk, for 35 km.

The section will start from the road junction near the town of Cricova (intersection of the national roads M2 – M5 – R6) to the intersection with the regional route G108 M5 – Floresti – Anenii Noi.

This section is crossed by several roads of national, international and regional importance:

• M1 Leuseni – Chisinau – Dubasari – Goianul Noi, from which it is possible to reach Bucharest, Iasi, Kiev, Poltava, etc,
• M2 Chisinau belt, northern and eastern segments;
• R6 Chisinau – Orhei – Balti, with connections to Soroca and the future bridge over the Dniester;
• R5 M5 – Vadul lui Voda – M4, with connections to Grigoriopol, Tiraspol, Ribnita and Dubasari;

Ungheni – Odessa highway, Cricova junction section – route G108

The sixth section of the highway Ungheni – Chisinau – Odessa, which is part of the second phase of construction, fully corresponds to the regional route G108 M5 – Floresti – Anenii Noi for 10 – 16 km.

The section will start from the national highway M5 and end in the town of Anenii Noi.

Ungheni – Odessa highway, route G108 M5 – Floresti – Anenii Noi

Segment 7 of the Ungheni-Chisinau-Odessa highway, which is part of the second construction phase, envisages the design and construction of a road route bypassing or transiting the town of Anenii Noi and connecting it with the national route R30 Anenii Noi – Causeni – Stefan Voda – Moldovan-Ukrainian border crossing points Palanca and Tudora.

The length of the new road section will be 5.5 km, of which about 4.5 km will be designed and built from scratch.

Ungheni – Odessa highway, route G108 M5 – Floresti – Anenii Noi

Section 8 of the Ungheni – Chisinau – Odessa highway, which is part of the second stage of construction, covers the entire national route R30 Anenii Noi – Causeni – Stefan Voda – Tudora border point, for about 100 km.

This road section is the last stage of the Ungheni – Chisinau – Odessa highway, which will be constructed / developed / designed on the territory of the Republic of Moldova.

Ungheni – Odessa highway, national highway R30 Anenii Noi – Causeni – Stefan Voda – Tudora border point

The estimated budget for this section is higher – about 1.6 billion euros, but it is also longer – about 245 kilometers.

The Ministry of Infrastructure and Regional Development promises to prepare feasibility studies for both sections in 2024, but the construction itself will take place in two phases, starting with Phase 1 and continuing with Phase 2.

Phase III – through Ukraine
The last section of the Ungheni-Chisinau-Odessa highway, which covers the entire territory of the present-day Odessa region of Ukraine, will be built on the basis of the European road M15 Reni-Odessa.

The section on the Ukrainian side is about 65 – 70 km long, of which 7 km pass through the territory of the Republic of Moldova, in the area of the Palanca – Mayaki – Udobnoye border crossing point.

Ungheni – Odessa highway, European road M15 Reni-Odessa (Ukraine)

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