Bucharest approves Petricani Overpass construction to ease northern traffic

Bucharest's General Council has given the green light for the construction of the Petricani Overpass, a significant infrastructure project aimed at alleviating traffic congestion in the northern part of the capital. The approval formalizes an association between the Bucharest City Hall, Sector 2 City Hall, Ilfov County Council, and the town of Voluntari to realize the ambitious plan.

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For a better understanding of the project, we will reconfigure both Petricani and Bucharest Nord roads, as well as the Bucharest-Constanța railway area. At the intersection, there are plans for an intermodal transport hub, which will also include the extension of Metro Line M2 and a station for the Bucharest-Ilfov metropolitan train.

For years, drivers have endured daily gridlock in this northern Bucharest area, losing valuable time and patience. The Petricani Overpass, first promised in 2010, is designed to span the railway line connecting Bucharest and Constanța, thereby bypassing the persistent bottlenecks. Sector 2 City Hall will play a central role, managing procurement for feasibility studies, design, and execution, while also contributing to funding and expropriation procedures.

Spanning nearly a kilometer, the overpass will navigate intersections with Șoseaua Petricani, Șoseaua Fabrica de Glucoză, and Bulevardul Dimitrie Pompeiu, before passing under the railway. Plans also include reconfiguring adjacent roads and developing an intermodal transport hub. This hub envisions the extension of Metro Line M2 and a station for the Bucharest-Ilfov metropolitan train, integrating various transport modes.

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The fact that the semi-barriers began to rise does not mean that the crossing can be traversed. Drivers must wait for their complete lifting and the corresponding signaling that permits crossing.

The project's approval comes after a recent dangerous incident at the Petricani railway crossing, where a car became trapped between the barriers as a train approached. Railway authorities, CFR SA, reiterated the critical importance of waiting for barriers to fully rise and signals to permit passage, warning that incomplete barrier lifts pose a major risk due to the potential for new train cycles.

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Another train may enter the installation's operating area, and the semi-barriers may begin to lower again. For this reason, entering the level crossing before the complete lifting of the semi-barriers represents a major risk.