Transfagarashan - the most beautiful high mountain road
Description:
Transfagarasan has two lanes, a length of about 92 kilometers, and due to the presence of 800 serpentine and an inclined road, the average speed of vehicles is a maximum of 40 kilometers per hour.
The road starts in Arefu, Arjesh region, and ends in the village of Cartisoara (Sibiu). There are 27 bridges and overpasses along the route, as well as the longest tunnel in Romania (887 meters) - Tunelul Balea. Tunnel ventilation is natural as wind currents are very strong. The Transfagaras Highway was to become a strategic route, a new route, which would allow the passage of Romanian troops to Transylvania in the event of war.
Due to Nicolae Ceausescu’s excessive desire to build this road, the road was built only to serve the interests of propaganda. The idea came to Ceausescu from his desire to compare with King Charles II, during which a similar Transalpina DN67C road was built. The project was kept secret for a long time. People have been working hard for 45 months to build the famous Transfagarasan Road. People worked hard by hand, partly using pneumatic tools to crush rocks.
The equipment was also dismantled to pieces so that it was more convenient to deliver it upstairs. Removed units manually, on a sled with ropes, and in some areas even on special rollers, slowly, to the destination. On September 20, 1974, when Nicolae Ceausescu was taking over the new road, the highway was simply covered with gravel. In 1975, work began on the construction of the pavement of the road, as well as strengthening and improving its safety. Asphalt pavement of the highway Transfagarash received only in 1976-1980.
Useful information
The road closes in November and opens on July 1.