European route E67

E67 shield

E67
Route information
Length: 1,673 km (1,040 mi)
Major junctions
From: Prague (Czech Republic)
To: Helsinki (Finland)
Location
Countries: Czech Republic, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Finland
Highway system
International E-road network

European route E 67 is an E-road running from Prague in the Czech Republic to Helsinki in Finland by way of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. It goes via Prague, Wrocław, Warsaw, Kaunas, Panevėžys, Riga, Tallinn and Helsinki.

It is known as the Via Baltica between Warsaw and Tallinn, a distance of 970 kilometres (600 mi). It is a significant road connection between the Baltic states. The final stretch between Tallinn and Helsinki is by ferry (with about 10 car ferry departures each direction per day[1]).

The E67 near Bříství, Czech Republic
Distance sign behind the Czech border in Poland
E67 near Ādaži, Latvia
At the Northern beginning at the port of Tallinn.

The route is mostly ordinary road, but there are plans to convert it into a motorway or expressway, in Poland called S8 (326 of 379km completed as of 2015) and S61 (19 of 235km completed as of 2015). The Via Baltica attracted great controversy in 2007, as its planned new express road was to take it through several areas in Poland of great natural value. Most controversial was the Augustów bypass, which would take the route through the wetlands of the Rospuda Valley, the last area of its kind remaining in Europe, and an area protected by EU law as part of the European Natura 2000 Network. In July 2007 Polish Prime Minister Jarosław Kaczyński halted work on the bypass after the European Commission applied for an immediate injunction.[2] After an intense campaign of protests in Poland and abroad and also counter-protests of the local community, the plans have been changed, and now the highway has been rerouted to completely avoid the wilderness area.[3][4]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Viking Line Tallink Eckerö Line
  2. ↑ Easton, Adam (2007-07-31). "Poland halts wetlands road plan". BBC News. BBC. Retrieved 2008-08-30.
  3. ↑ Rospuda ocalona
  4. ↑ BBC - Poland reverses to spare wetland
Wikimedia Commons has media related to E 67.
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Via Baltica.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 12/22/2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.