A3 Transylvania Motorway (Brașov–Cluj–Borș)
Northern arm of the A3, running from Târgu Mureș through Cluj-Napoca and Zalău to the Hungarian border at Borș, where it meets the M4. Originally contracted to Bechtel in 2003 as a single design-build-finance deal; that contract was terminated in 2013 after the company delivered only 52 of the contracted kilometres, and the remaining lots were re-tendered with EU financing. Sections opened in stages from 2009; the mountainous Nușfalău–Zimbor stretch through the Meseș tunnel is the last major gap.
- Total length
- 258 km
- Open today
- 130 km
- Under construction
- 128 km
- Sections
- 8
- Cost on record
- €279.57M
- 3 of 8 sections carry a comparable figure
Restated into EUR at 2025 prices.
Sections
| Sections | Status | Length | Timeline | Cost | Funding | Contractors | Contract terms |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Borș (Hungarian border) – Biharia First Romanian motorway completed in 2020: opened 4 September 2020, connecting directly to the Hungarian motorway network | Opened | 5 km |
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| 15 mo execution · Contract value lei 134.22M |
| Biharia – Suplacu de Barcău Biharia–Chiribiș (28.55 km) and Chiribiș–Suplacu de Barcău (26.35 km) re-tendered after the Bechtel termination; OpenStreetMap tags opening_date=2026 on subsection 3A lot 2 | Under construction | 55 km |
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| – |
| Suplacu de Barcău – Nușfalău Section of the Transylvania motorway re-tendered with EU financing after the 2013 Bechtel termination | Opened | 14 km |
| – |
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| 18 mo execution · 24 mo total · Contract value lei 384.14M |
| Nușfalău – Zimbor (Meseș tunnel) Last major gap of the Transylvania motorway, including the Meseș tunnel, Romania's longest road tunnel when complete. OpenStreetMap tags opening_date=2032 on Tunel Meseș and subsections 3B3/3B4/3B lot 3; the 31 km Nușfalău–Poarta Sălajului lot was still in tender at the technical-project stage | Under construction | 43 km |
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| Zimbor – Nădășelu (Mihăiești) Nădășelu–Mihăiești (16.85 km) contracted May 2016 for €100M with an 18-month term; design was delayed because the feasibility study proved inadequate. OpenStreetMap tags opening_date=2026 on subsection 3B1 (Mihăiești–Zimbor) and the Nădășelu route deviation | Under construction 65 of 24 contracted months 41 months past the contract date | 30 km |
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| 12 mo design · 24 mo execution · 36 mo total · 60 mo guarantee · Contract value €100M |
| Gilău (Cluj West) – Turda First 42 km of the Transylvania motorway, opened 1 December 2009; built under the 2003 Bechtel design-build-finance contract, whose ground-breaking was held at Chinteni (Cluj) on 16 June 2004. Bechtel delivered 52 of the contracted kilometres before termination in 2013 | Opened | 42 km |
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| Turda – Câmpia Turzii Final 10–12 km delivered by Bechtel on the Câmpia Turzii–Gilău section, inaugurated 13 November 2010 | Opened | 12 km |
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| Câmpia Turzii – Târgu Mureș (Ungheni) Iernut–Ungheni was the first segment of this section opened, on 12 December 2018, after the Geiger and Strabag lots were finished; the Cluj-Napoca West (Gilău)–Nădășelu extension followed in 2018 | Opened | 57 km |
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Contractor roles are as recorded in the award. Only builders count toward the delivery rankings.
Funding
- National budget258 km8 sections
- European Union204 km6 sections
- EU funds
- EU funds, after the Bechtel contract was terminated in 2013
A section that lists two sources counts its full length under each: the data records which sources paid, not what share each one carried.
Related projects
- HighwaysA1 Bucharest–Nădlac MotorwaySame contractor: Geiger, Spedition UMB, Strabag
- HighwaysA7 Motorway (Moldavia Motorway)Same contractor: Nurol, Spedition UMB
- HighwaysA8 Târgu Mureș–Iași–Ungheni Motorway (Unirii)Same contractor: Nurol, Spedition UMB
- HighwaysA6 Europe MotorwaySame contractor: Strabag
- HighwaysA0 Bucharest Ring MotorwaySame contractor: Spedition UMB
- HighwaysA3 Bucharest–Brașov MotorwaySame contractor: Spedition UMB