The joint offer of the companies "Elcom Mne" Podgorica, "Mezon" Danilovgrad, "Paming" Podgorica and "Via Project" from Podgorica was assessed by the Public Procurement Commission of the Municipality of Pljevlja as the most favorable in the tender for the installation of traffic signals at two intersections in the city.
The second-ranked joint bid was made by “Telegroup Podgorica”, “Telegroup Banja Luka” and “Via ing Nikšić”, “Hidroproject Podgorica”, “SBCC Cetinje” and “EFusion Nikšić”.
The first-ranked bidder will complete the work on installing traffic lights for 194.722 euros, which is about 25.000 less than the estimated value of the procurement and about 23.000 less than the second-ranked bidder.
The contract execution deadline is 90 days from the date of the contractor's introduction into the work.
The municipality plans to install traffic lights at the intersection of Kralja Petra I, Ivana Milutinovića and Ivana Ružića streets in the Jalija neighborhood and at the intersection of Ulica solidarnosti and Miloša Tošića near Voli market.
This will bring traffic lights back to the northernmost Montenegrin city after almost forty years.
Pljevlja is one of the few cities in Montenegro without a single traffic light, and only recently was a roundabout built at the intersection near the Post Office and the Bus Station.
This was not always the case, however. In the 1980s, traffic lights were in operation at about fifteen intersections. Traffic lights were first installed in 1983, as part of a city beautification campaign to celebrate the arrival of the then Italian president. Sandra Pertini, who visited Pljevlja on September 21 of that year and unveiled a monument to the partisan unit “Garibaldi.” A few years later, due to the negligence of the local authorities at the time, they stopped working, and the last traces were removed from the streets a few years ago.
Although most Pljevlja residents believe that traffic lights should be installed at some other intersections where traffic accidents are frequent, such as the intersection at the Stone Bridge and near the Red Cross building, the Secretariat for Communal and Housing Affairs, Traffic and Water said that compared to the 1980s, traffic lights cannot be restored to all previous intersections.
"There are intersections where traffic lights can be installed and we will install them there. In some places, this is not possible because there is no third lane for turning, which would cause congestion, and the problem is also the steep streets on which it would be difficult to stop vehicles during the winter," the Secretariat told "Vijesti".
An earlier study commissioned by the local government showed that traffic lights should only be installed at two intersections, while at the other busiest intersections, traffic should be regulated by constructing roundabouts.
It was proposed that the traffic lights be re-installed at the intersection of Nikola Pašića and Volođina Streets, near the Red Cross building and in the Jalija neighborhood at the intersection of Kralja Petra I and Ivan Milutinović Streets, with the proposal that the first intersection should be prioritized when installing light signals.
"Analysis of the difference in traffic load values in the period 2008-2022 determined that there was an increase in traffic at four analyzed intersections in the range of 10-30 percent, while at three there was a decrease of about five percent... After analyzing the characteristics of traffic flow, the capacity capabilities of the street network, the geometry of intersections, as well as the number and distribution of traffic accidents on the street network of Pljevlja, critical points were identified. Solutions were provided in agreement with the investor, taking into account the existing planning and design elements that have been developed, as well as the existing purpose of the areas, so that their implementation could be initiated in the short term," the study states.
Bonus video:
