The important but dangerous Suðurfjarðavegur (Southern Fjord Road) runs through the southern part of Fjarðabyggð, connecting Breiðdalsvík, Stöðvarfjörður, Fáskrúðsfjörður, Reyðarfjörður, Eskifjörður, Neskaupstaður and Mjóafjörður. The necessary development of the road has been discussed in Fjarðabyggð since the oldest people remember and probably longer. Little progress has been made and we, like many residents of the Southfjords of East Iceland, were shocked to see that the renovation plan is not until 2032!
It was therefore a matter of celebration to see a proposal for a parliamentary resolution by Njálur Trausti Friðbertsson and Berglind Óskar Guðmundsdóttir, members of parliament from the Independence Party, to accelerate the construction of the Suðurfjarðavegur. The section of road from Breiðdalsvík to Fáskrúðsfjörður is considered the most dangerous according to assessments by EuroRap, an organization for the quality assessment of the European road network. Single-wide bridges are children of their time and should not belong to modern society, and there are three of them on the road section, including the bridge over the Sléttuá River in Reyðarfjörður, which carries the heaviest traffic of single-wide bridges in East Iceland. Large construction equipment cannot cross it and must wait for a ford in the river to travel between fjords.
The problem is compounded by the fact that mobile phone coverage is very patchy there, and therefore there is a greater risk of loss of life in accidents on this road.
The analysis of the aforementioned parliamentary resolution states that traffic congestion has increased significantly in recent years and will continue with the dynamic development of Fjarðabyggð. The road is a key element in a unified municipality. School transportation from Breiðdalsvík to Stöðvarfjörður is part of the week. Residents of the southern fjords of Fjarðabyggð travel on this bad road every day to get to services, jobs, social activities, and sports and youth activities.
We can never function as a whole while the municipality is torn apart by this dangerous road. We as a community need to be diligent in reminding people of this and demanding that the reconstruction be accelerated.
Sjálfstæðisflokkurinn in Fjarðabyggð will not remain silent regarding the development of the Suðurfjarðaveg. He demands improvements, let's vote for the Independence Party in Fjarðabyggð .