Construction of Shambiko-Barentu Highway in Eritrea is in good progress. The project is part of the strategic Mendefera-Barentu Highway route. According to Mr. Teame Ande, coordinator of the road construction project, the road work is being carried out by the cooperation of Bidho General Construction Company and the Adi-Halo Project.
“So far the road from Bushuka to Barentu is being constructed by replacing the former road by another new 20m wide and 10 km long expanded and upgraded modern highway,” said Mr. Ande while acknowledging the fact that the Shambiko-Barentu Highway road has been difficult for transportation.
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Construction works
One of the road construction engineers deployed in the area, Eng. Estifanos Tesfagabir said that the construction work includes repairing and expanding of network of roads, and constructing the new highway which is part of the strategic Mendefera-Barentu Highway.
Eng. Estifanos further added that a number of modern machineries and skilled human power deployed at the road work is contributing in the effectiveness of the task and expressed conviction that the construction of the Barentu-Shambiko Highway will be completed in the near future.
The Eritrean highway system is named according to the road classification. The three levels of classification are: primary (P), secondary (S), and tertiary (T). The lowest level road is tertiary and serves local interests. Typically they are improved earth roads which are occasionally paved. During the wet seasons these roads typically become impassable. The next higher level road is a secondary road and typically is a single-layered asphalt road that connects district capitals together and those to the regional capitals.
