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Official press release by VivaCell-MTS

The traffic on the streets of the town of Meghri, Syunik region, the southern gate of Armenia, is heavy days and nights. The traffic flow on Yerevan-Meghri highway never stops; passenger cars and heavy trucks rush along the road to the state border and back throughout the day. But to reach the border security unit, the military camps and agricultural lands people are forced to walk more than a kilometer, where the highway has no pedestrian sideways separated from the driveway. The likelihood of accidents increases particularly in the nighttime, due to the total lack of illumination in this part of the road. The problem of street lighting remained a priority for the community for months.

The FPWC and its general partner VivaCell-MTS took over the issue around 5 months ago.  Although the street lighting was included in the community development plan, the installation of lighting in that particular area was made possible only owing to the cooperation of the parties. Meghri, located some 370 km from the capital, has recently started the construction works in that problematic section of the road. Energy efficient 33 LED lights have been installed to illuminate around 1 km of the road.

“As of today the lighting component of Meghri community development program is implemented. We have now solved both social and safety issues. There has always been a near emergency situation on that part of Yerevan-Meghri highway. We hope that with the lighting system the situation will change completely. The project also has a positive impact in terms of environment,” Mayor of Meghri, Mkhitar Zakaryan said.

“The project, implemented in a number of Armenian communities, is rather effective from a few perspectives. This is a modern approach which provides solution to both social, environmental, and safety issues.  Unlike gas or economy lamps, the LED lights serve longer, and do not require additional financial or human resources for frequent replacement or maintenance. The savings reach up to 65-80%,” said Martin Maralchyan, the project coordinator.

This is yet another achievement for FPWC and VivaCell-MTS: the community issue has been sustainably solved.  The energy efficient system has been launched in the problematic part of Meghri highway.