Verdict: GeoFacts concludes that Tatia Nikolashvili’s statement is TRUE.
Statement: “In total, 73% of roads in Ozurgeti are deemed inefficient according to the official data within their own [municipal government] documentation.”
Resume: A total of 1,544 km of major and local roads are included within Ozurgeti Municipality with 1,400 km being local roads. Only 23.8% of local roads were deemed orderly as of the end of 2023 whilst the rest are practically impossible to use, especially during times of precipitation. Various villages have been urging the authorities to address the issue for years. Emergency and other essential transport services often cannot reach the local population during critical situations due to the inefficiency of road infrastructure. This information can be retrieved from the 2024-2027 medium-term development document of Ozurgeti. Notably, the necessary improvements in road infrastructure were also outlined in the 2020-2023 medium-term development plan. The Municipality Town Hall has emphasised that they plan to cover 60% of the inefficient roads with concrete. Ozurgeti village populations typically request the rehabilitation of local and major roads that connect villages to the city as well as the provision of necessary equipment for constructing concrete roads under the Village Support Programme. The aforementioned document deems 76% of local roads inefficient.
Thus, GeoFacts concludes that Tatia Nikolashvili’s statement is TRUE.
Analysis
A member of the Ozurgeti Municipality Assembly who is representing the United National Movement political party, Tatia Nikolashvili, claimed: “In total, 73% of roads in Ozurgeti are deemed inefficient according to the official data within their own [municipal government] documentation.”
The Town Hall’s order regarding the approval of the 2024-2027 Ozurgeti Municipality medium-term development plan can be found on the Municipality’s official website. The Ozurgeti Municipality has a total of 1,544 km of major and local roads, including a 12.4 km-long internationally significant road connecting Senaki-Poti-Sarpi as per the document. Furthermore, the major roads constitute 105.4 km whilst the remaining 1,426 km are local village roads (or 1,400 km according to other sources). The Municipal Government highlights that only 23.8% of village roads are covered with asphalt or concrete with some villages having roads in such poor condition that they are difficult for transport to navigate efficiently, including emergency vehicles. Additionally, the population has limited access to workplaces, educational institutions, shopping centres or other essential locations, particularly during times of precipitation. The government acknowledges that the situation is severely harsh, hence the dissatisfaction voiced by the population is fair.
The municipality population is dissatisfied, naming inefficient roads as their primary issue despite facing several others. Although the Town Hall claims that construction work will be carried out at multiple locations each year, many villages still have roads in such poor condition that it is nearly impossible to travel. The issue is especially prevalent in villages where landslides have caused severe casualties.
The list of activities carried out under the Village Support Programme further highlights the crucial need for better local roads in villages. There is a particularly high demand for rehabilitating local roads and the purchasing necessary equipment for constructing concrete roads. Similar requests were made in 2023 as cited by the records of meetings with the population. Aside from the above, the issue regarding local roads is described identically in both the 2024-2027 and the 2020-2023 medium-term development plans but with one difference – only 5% of the local roads were covered in asphalt and concrete previously as per the older edition whereas now the portion of rehabilitated roads has increased by 18.8%. All in all, over 76% of the roads still need to be rehabilitated.
Considering the above analysis, GeoFacts concludes that Tatia Nikolashvili’s statement is TRUE.
