Transport in Slovenia - Roads

Roads

With the share of over 80%, the road freight and passenger transport constitutes the largest part of transport in Slovenia. Personal cars are much more popular than public road passenger transport, which has significantly declined. Motorways and expressways, operated by the Motorway Company in the Republic of Slovenia, are the state roads of the highest category. On motorways and express ways, cars must have a toll sticker. Slovenia has a very high motorway density compared to the European Union average. The first highway in Slovenia, the A1 motorway connecting Vrhnika and Postojna, was opened in 1972, but the construction was really speed up in 1994, when the National Assembly enacted the first National Motorway Construction Programme. Till February 2012, a network consisting of 528 km (328 mi) of motorways, expressways and similar roads has been built. Its essential section, the Slovenian Motorway Cross, which is part of the Trans-European Road network, was completed in October 2011. It comprises the motorway route heading from east to west, in line with the Pan-European Corridor V, and the motorway route heading in the north–south direction, in line with the Pan-European Corridor X, part of which is considered the Slovenian transport backbone. The newly-built road system slowly, but steadily transforms Slovenia into a large conurbation and connects it as a unitary social, economic and cultural space, with links to neighbouring areas. In contrast, other state roads, managed by the Road Directorate of the Republic of Slovenia, have been rapidly deteriorating due to neglection and the overall increase in traffic. About half of them are in a bad condition. The urban and suburban network serviced by buses is relatively dense.