PRIME MINISTER SAYS NO TOLL TO BE INTRODUCED ON NEW ISTRIAN ROAD

( Editorial: --> 6966 ) ZAGREB, May 27 (Hina) - Croatian Prime Minister Zlatko Matesa announced in Zagreb on Wednesday that a road toll would not be introduced on the completed section of a new road through the western coastal region of Istria. Matesa said the government had accepted an initiative of the Istrian branch of the governing Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) that no tolls would be paid on the new section nor on future sections of the so-called Istrian Y road. "The government will use its rights from the agreement with the contractors and this issue will be decided upon in a different way, so that there will be no new costs, apart from the tunnel toll which has been paid up to now," he said. Residents of the Istrian peninsula were upset over the news that a toll would be introduced on sections of the new road, which is not a motorway. The Istrian county assembly on May 20 discussed the issue and unanimously passed an Interpolation on the Istrian Road, in which it called for traffic to pass on the road without the payment of a toll. The Interpolation also said the announcement of a toll had opened up a question about the conditions under which the concession had been awarded for the building of the road. Concessions for the building and use of the Istrian road were awarded to BINA ISTRA, a stockholding company formed by the French firm Bouygues, Zagreb's INA and Istarske autoceste. The largest party in the region, the Istrian Democratic Assembly (IDS), announced a public protest for June 6. In the meantime though HDZ councillors opposed the holding of protests until attempts were made to resolve the problem through dialogue. As a result they arrived in Zagreb on Wednesday for talks with Prime Minister Matesa. According to the Government Communications Office, HDZ Istrian County president Mario Bratulic expressed satisfaction with the results of the talks because a solution had been reached for the good of all Istrian residents as well as the large number of tourists who will use the road this summer. (Hina) jn mbr /ha 272128 MET may 98