S19 Via Carpatia Expressway (Polish section)

The Polish section of the S19 expressway constitutes the national part of the international Via Carpatia route and runs from the north to the south of the country, from the border crossing with Belarus at Kuźnica Białostocka to the border with Slovakia at Barwinek, with a total planned length of approx. 570-580 km. The route between Lublin and Rzeszów was fully opened to drivers in May 2022, and since then further sections have been brought into service in Podkarpacie and Podlasie. In 2026 the construction of further sections is under way, including 71 km south of Białystok, where works are being carried out on five construction sections. The investor is GDDKiA, and the undertaking is being implemented under the Government National Road Construction Programme. The estimated cost of building the entire S19 exceeded PLN 27 billion (a 2020 estimate). Originally the entire route was planned to be completed by the end of 2026, but as a result of delays the bringing into service of the further sections has been spread over time: the sections in Podlasie and Podkarpacie are being opened in the years 2027-2028, and the completion of the final sections in Podkarpacie (including Jawornik-Lutcza) is anticipated for 2031.

How it went

Assessment: too early to assess. Signals only where documented.

Delivery partial

Schedule delayed

Timeline

Slip: +60 mo. vs. the original date

1. Original date 2026
2. Current date 2031

Change history

• 2024 stage: construction

Significance

The S19, as the Polish section of Via Carpatia, creates a dual-carriageway expressway corridor linking the country's eastern border with the south and further with the trans-European network, improving the transport accessibility of Eastern Poland (Podlasie, the Lublin region, Podkarpacie). Completed sections, such as the Lublin-Rzeszów route, have cut the travel time on that relation to about 90 minutes. Beyond its economic and cohesion significance for peripheral regions, the corridor also has a strategic dimension as a north-south transport axis along the eastern flank.

Sources 5 · 5 archived

Every fact on this card comes from the sources below. Next to each source — which fields it supports.

1. Otwarcie ostatniego odcinka trasy S19 Lublin-Rzeszów ↗ archived ✓
   Urząd Marszałkowski Województwa Lubelskiego (lubelskie.pl) May 2022

   locations[1] „Trasa S-19 między Lublinem a Rzeszowem jest już w całości dostępna dla kierowców."

2. Podlaska S19 - coraz więcej kilometrów w budowie ↗ archived ✓
   GDDKIA / gov.pl 25 Oct 2024
   StatusStageStage history

   Status „Prace trwają na pięciu odcinkach realizacyjnych, a łączna wartość umów podpisanych z ich wykonawcami to prawie 2 mld zł."

   Stage „Najdłuższy drogowy plac budowy w województwie podlaskim to 71 kilometrów powstającej właśnie drogi ekspresowej S19 na południe od Białegostoku."

3. Najważniejsza polska część Via Carpatia powstanie do końca 2026 roku za 27 mld zł ↗ archived ✓
   Forsal.pl 5 Oct 2020
   CostOriginal date

   Cost „Budowa S19 będzie kosztować ponad 27 mld zł, z czego koszty prac budowlanych to blisko 24 mld zł."

   Original date „Cała trasa ma być gotowa do końca 2026 r."

4. Droga ekspresowa S19 (Polska) ↗ archived ✓
   Wikipedia
   Status
5. Budowa S19 - stop dezinformacji ↗ archived ✓
   Generalna Dyrekcja Dróg Krajowych i Autostrad, Oddział Rzeszów (gov.pl) 6 May 2026
   InvestorCurrent date

   Current date „Termin zakończenia: 2031 r."

   Investor „GDDKiA aktywnie zarządza realizacją inwestycji, stojąc na straży wydatkowania środków publicznych."