While the Kolašin opposition assesses that this winter tourist season in Kolašin is also characterized by traffic chaos and that it is necessary to urgently form an operational team to resolve such a situation, the authorities claim that they have already acted in that regard and are announcing projects that will significantly improve the situation.
The opposition reminds that due to the small parking capacity at the ski centers, on several occasions there was a complete traffic jam on the Kolašin - Berane road. They also claim that the situation is no better in the city center itself, where the traffic load has caused extreme inconvenience to pedestrians and drivers, especially after snowfalls. They also say that, due to the lack of parking spaces, the city streets are congested, and the snowplows of the Municipal Company have not been able to properly remove snow from the roadway.
The Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS), Social Democrats (SD) and Citizens' Club of Councilors called on the authorities to include "experts in the field of traffic safety in order to bring the situation under partial control."
Vice President of the Municipality Vasilje Ivanovic, however, claims for "Vijesti" that "the past year was marked by an ever more intensive and dedicated preparation of technical documentation, and finding strategies for solving inherited problems." The current government, he explains, has been greeted by inherited problems, the resolution of which should have started much earlier, in his opinion.
"As the vice-president of the municipality, I actively participated in identifying and solving the problem, together with the president, vice-president, manager... I argue that the problem that arose after the opening of the Klisura tunnel should have been solved or that concrete steps should have been taken towards solving it during its construction. Despite all the difficulties, after the opening of the tunnel, we started preparing technical documentation, and in addition, we also encountered the problem of ownership of the road to Bjelasica. However, in cooperation with the Traffic Directorate, we managed to overcome these obstacles and start the project to adapt that road," says Ivanović.
He reminds that the Municipality "currently has no authority in regulating parking spaces on Bjelasica." However, he believes that the activities undertaken by the local government will greatly facilitate the functioning and accessibility of the ski center in the future.
The opposition also criticized the current majority for not accepting the budget amendment, which would have provided money for the development of the city garage project, which, as they claim, is "the only solution for traffic relief in the inner city center at this moment". As Ivanovic said, "allocating funds for the 'garage project under the squares' would only result in the blocking of these funds, without the possibility of their implementation".
"The reason is simple: The municipality has a single budget item for the complete project documentation, from which projects for various purposes are financed. I would like to inform the citizens that this year we will have a finished parking garage project, the implementation of which will be significantly simpler, faster and more cost-effective, without disrupting the daily activities of citizens and tourists, which would be the case if such a facility were built under the squares," promises the vice-president of the municipality of Kolašin.
He says he is surprised when the opposition talks about a traffic collapse, because “the fact that the street from Vladoški Most to the entrance to the city has been a so-called bottleneck for almost two decades is a fact.” According to Ivanovic, the previous government, in which the current opposition also participated, “did nothing to change that.”
"We recognized this problem at the beginning of our mandate. Technical documentation has been prepared, and in cooperation with the Government and the Ministry of Finance, funds in the amount of 2,4 million euros have been provided for the implementation of this project in the coming year. Also, in the local budget, we have foreseen funds for the construction of sidewalks and the arrangement of pedestrian traffic, as well as for the rehabilitation of numerous city, suburban and local roads, and that the preparation of project documentation for several roads in the city is underway," he announced.
Ivanovic: Opposition's statements contribute to negative campaign
In a statement from the opposition councilors' club, they reminded everyone in the city that they are "responsible for contributing to improving the tourist environment and are obliged to prevent the negative campaign being waged against Kolašin as a tourist destination." The deputy mayor, however, calls on the opposition "not to cause further damage to Kolašin with their statements and contribute to the negative campaign."
"Such appearances send the wrong message to potential visitors, suggesting that nothing is being done to solve the problems, while at the same time making sense of the efforts and planned projects that await implementation after the adoption of the budget. I call on my colleagues from the opposition to convey to their party colleagues in the Parliament of Montenegro that the safety of the citizens of Kolašin, as well as all visitors, is now in their hands. The construction season in Kolašin is short, and the blockade of the parliament is preventing investments worth around 100 million euros, which the Government has earmarked for Kolašin," says Ivanović.
These funds, he claims, represent the most significant investments for the development of Kolašin ever allocated by the Government. A large part of this money, the Vice President of the Municipality explains, is intended specifically to solve traffic problems.
The opposition reminds that due to the small parking capacity at the ski centers, on several occasions there was a complete traffic jam on the Kolašin - Berane road. They also claim that the situation is no better in the city center itself, where the traffic load has caused extreme inconvenience to pedestrians and drivers, especially after snowfalls. They also say that, due to the lack of parking spaces, the city streets are congested, and the snowplows of the Municipal Company have not been able to properly remove snow from the roadway
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