For the second time, residents of Hotolisht in Librazhd blocked the Librazhd-Përrenjas segment for several minutes in protest against the "Elbasan-Qafë Thanë" road expansion project.
"After the first peaceful protest, we have not received any reaction from the responsible institutions. Silence has turned into an attitude and this shows a complete disregard for the citizens of a community," one of the residents of Hotolisht read in her statement.
They repeated the same demands, such as changing the current project that divides the village in the middle by finding alternative solutions through a tunnel or a crossing along the Shkumbin River.
Residents demanded a reassessment of the property price.
"From 370 lek per square meter in 2001 to 170 lek per square meter in 2025", one of the residents said, emphasizing that the price for the reconstruction is unacceptable since "25 thousand lek per square meter is not enough to rebuild a new house."
They demanded a fair and realistic assessment, while calling on the ARA and the Minister of Infrastructure and Energy Belinda Balluku to reflect on this project without harming an entire community.
Numerous police forces were present at the scene, and there were also tensions between them and the residents.
This is the second protest by residents on the streets, while their revolt has been going on since 2024, when construction work began near the village.
Been protesting for months
Since 2024, when works to expand the "Elbasan-Qafë Thanë" road have approached the village of Hotolishti, residents have expressed their opposition to a project with which they were not consulted.
According to the residents, there was no public hearing held with them, while they learned that the road would pass through their residential neighborhood from employees who went to the field to take measurements.
They sent a petition of 511 signatures to central institutions requesting alternative solutions, through a tunnel or by passing through the Shkumbini valley.
So far, there has been no response from state institutions, and even at the meeting that Infrastructure Minister Belinda Balluku promised to hold on March 17, she did not show up to listen to the residents.
This segment that affects the village of Hotolisht is the eighth phase of the project and starts about 140 meters from the turn to the place called Rrethi i Bardhë and ends about 300 meters from the turn to the village of Xhyre. The winning company for this segment is "Fusha" shpk, which signed the contract in July 2024.
Works on the "Elbasan-Qafë Thanë" road began in January 2023 as part of Corridor VIII that connects the port of Durres with the port of Varna in Bulgaria, a connection considered strategic for the transport of goods and citizens.
According to the Road Authority, the eight lots tendered so far are estimated to cost over 183 million euros and are expected to be completed within 2026.
Read also:
- The "Elbasan-Qafë Thanë" road divides the village of Hotolisht in Librazhd.
- Over 500 residents of Hotolisht petition against the road that divides the village
- No information about the road project, Hotolishti warns of protest
Erisa Kryeziu has completed higher studies in Journalism and Communication and Master of Science in Public Relations at the University of Tirana. She has been a journalist and project manager at Citizens.al for five years, where she reports on social issues and human rights, especially on issues of rights at work, in education, gender equality, marginalized groups, people with disabilities such as and for environmental issues. At the same time, she works as a project coordinator with a focus on youth and media education. User of new reporting techniques such as "Mobile Journalism" and citizen engagement tools in reporting (ECR-Engage Citizens Journalism).
