Sri Lanka completes first phase of the Southern Expressway project

Sri Lanka has completed the first section of Southern Expressway running from Kottawa to Galle which is scheduled to open on 27 November.

The project was jointly funded by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Japan Bank of International Corporation (JBIC).

The 65km stretch from Kottawa to Kurundugahahetekma was funded by JBIC, while the 64.8km section from Kurundugahahetekma to Godagama, Matara, was funded by ADB.

There will be eight intersections up to Galle and 11 intersections to Matara; the expressway will be first tollway in the country.

Construction on the project started in 2006 and so far LKR70bn ($634.8m) has been spent.

Once it is all complete, the journey time from Colombo to Galle will be reduced to less than 90 minutes.