According to the Road Value Management Unit (ÚHP) of the Slovak Ministry of Finance, the version that plans to complete the part of the D1 highway bordering Ukraine with a tunnel-free Dargovi Pass crossing and the southern bypass of Michalovce can bring the greatest social return. Based on their assessment, cost reduction could be achieved if the section of the highway from Michalovce to the state border is built in a half-width profile in the first section. In its analysis, the ÚHP relied on the feasibility study published by the National Motorway Company (NDS).
The study examined ten route versions, each with four lanes across the entire corridor. Neither version had benefits that outweighed their costs. The recommended version was specified with a tunnelless Dargovi line, a northern bypass and an estimated cost of €1.4 billion, including VAT. A more favorable route for the D1 corridor According to the ÚHP, the study discovered a new, more favorable route for the D1 corridor, which includes crossing the Dargovi pass without a tunnel and completing the highway at the Vyšné Nemecké border crossing. This version promises to be more efficient compared to the original plans from nearly ten years ago and the lines included in the land use plans. According to the assessment of the Ministry of Finance, this version can bring the highest social return. The social return would be more likely if the costs of the route were optimized, the transport model was transformed, and the analysis of benefits and costs was recalculated based on the current methodology.
According to the ÚHP, the costs of the project can be optimized by building the section from Michalovce to the state border in a half-wide profile in the first phase. According to the study, the half-wide profile would be sufficient in the long term, with a potential cost reduction of 72-193 million euros depending on the version chosen. The complete profile can be built later if the increase in traffic justifies it. Another relevant alternative The ÚHP recommended that when determining the route of the highway, an up-to-date analysis using the latest methodology and an updated traffic model should be taken into account. According to their proposal, it would be worthwhile to examine an additional relevant alternative and deal with the possibilities of optimizing costs. According to the study, the D1 section from Bidovice to the Ukrainian state border is more than 70 kilometers long, and the costs are estimated at 1.4-1.8 billion euros including VAT. The corridor is part of the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T), its construction is planned for the period between 2032 and 2040. The source of funding for the project is not yet known.