Section of new highway opens in southeast Moravia

The first section of a long-awaited new motorway in the south Moravian region of Zlin has opened. The section of the planned R55 highway which is to eventually link the Moravian cities of Olomouc and Breclav is open to drivers as of Friday afternoon. The first stretch of highway to open, a ring bypassing the city of Otrokovice near Zlin, took five years to complete and cost over 1.4 billion crowns (nearly $63 million US). The R55 highway plan was put forth in 1993 and once completed, it is expected to be one of the busiest highways in the Czech Republic.