BUDVA, Montenegro, Oct. 5 (Xinhua) -- Montenegro on Monday broke ground on a 237.47-million-euro (about 265 million U.S. dollars) bypass around the coastal city of Budva, a major tourism destination that faces heavy traffic congestion during the summer season.

The approximately 8-km bypass is designed to divert transit traffic away from the city center and improve transport conditions in the wider coastal area.

The project includes around 4 km of tunnels and 2 km of bridges, with engineering structures accounting for around 70 percent of the route. Construction is expected to take four years.

The project will be carried out by an international consortium comprising five companies from Montenegro, China and Bosnia and Herzegovina, including China's Shandong Hi-Speed Group.

Montenegrin Prime Minister Milojko Spajic, Chinese Ambassador to Montenegro Chen Xufeng and other officials attended the groundbreaking ceremony in Budva.

Spajic stressed that quality infrastructure is essential to boost the economy. "There is no strong tourism or strong economy without quality infrastructure to support them," he said.

According to Monteput, Montenegro's state-owned highway company and the project investor, the bypass will connect the Budva-Cetinje road near Markovici with the Budva-Tivat road near Lastva Grbaljska.

The project is part of Montenegro's broader plan to develop an integrated network of highways and expressways. ■

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