DUBROVNIK AREA BRIDGE OPENED

DUBROVNIK, May 12 (Hina) - The completion of a bridge in the Dubrovnik area in southernmost Croatia was marked on Saturday evening, with numerous guests attending, including Prime Minister Ivica Racan. #L# The bridge will help reduce the isolation of this area, it represents a major infrastructure facility and such facilities are what the government wants to work on, said Racan. "We want to connect the people of our country and we want Croatia to prosper," he said, adding that the Dubrovnik area bridge would gain in importance in three years, when the Zagreb-Split motorway, which will then extend south to Dubrovnik, was completed. Mayor Dubravka Suica said the bridge enabled Dubrovnik to expand westward and move closer to Croatia and Europe. She thanked Racan for opening the bridge, whose foundation stone was laid by former President Franjo Tudjman. Croatian Roads Management head Vladimir Bizjak said the bridge represented a world-scale bridge-building enterprise. The bridge is 519m long, 52m high, was made of 20,000 cubic metres of concrete, and cost EUR32.3 million, he recalled. Also today, the Dubrovnik-Neretva County Assembly held a special session, with attendance from several government ministers, including Racan. (hina) ha