European route E73 forms part of the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

International E-road network The international E-road network is a numbering system for roads in Europe developed by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE). The network is numbered from E1 up and its roads cross national borders. It also reaches Central ...

, connecting

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

and eastern

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

and the

Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Se ...

in the vicinity of the port of Ploče. This route is also designated as the Pan-European Corridor Vc, a branch of the fifth Pan-European corridor. The route largely consists of two-lane roads with

at-grade intersection An intersection or an at-grade junction is a junction where two or more roads converge, diverge, meet or cross at the same height, as opposed to an interchange, which uses bridges or tunnels to separate different roads. Major intersections ar ...

s, although in the 2000s, about a third of the route was upgraded to

motorway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway, and expressway. Other similar terms ...

standards. The remainder of the route is currently being upgraded in all the countries spanned. The longest part of this corridor goes through

and is widely touted as a road instrumental to the development of the country. As such, and given its geographical location, the road has occasionally been dubbed as the ''kičma Bosne'' (eng. ''The spine of Bosnia''). The road also serves as the shortest connection of the eastern and southern parts of Croatia.

Route description

The European route E73 is a part of the

, long, connecting parts of Hungary and Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina to the Adriatic Sea coast near the port of Ploče. The route is a Class A intermediate north–south road, consisting of of

motorways A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway, and expressway. Other similar terms ...

, and a substantial proportion of two-lane roads with

s. The E73 starts at the

Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...

ring motorway, providing connection to the Hungarian motorway network, as well as the European routes E60, E71 and E75, at an interchange with the

M6 motorway The M6 motorway is the longest motorway in the United Kingdom. It is located entirely within England, running for just over from the Midlands to the border with Scotland. It begins at Junction 19 of the M1 motorway, M1 and the western end of t ...

taking the E73 route south, past

Dunaújváros Dunaújváros (; also known by #Etymology and names, alternative names) is an industrial city in Fejér County, Central Hungary. It is a city with county rights. Situated 70 kilometres (43 miles) south of Budapest on the Danube, the city is best ...

and

Szekszárd Szekszárd (, formerly also ''Szegzárd''; ; or ; ) is a small city in southern Hungary and the capital of Tolna County. By population, Szekszárd is the smallest county capital in Hungary; by area, it is the second-smallest (after Tatabánya). ...

towards

Bóly Bóly (; ) is a town in Baranya County, Hungary. Today Hungarian, the town was historically home to a large Danube Swabian population. History Until the end of World War II, the town's inhabitants were Danube Swabians, also locally known as ...

, where the motorway (as of August 2011) terminates, and the E73 switches to routes 57 and then 56 past

Mohács Mohács (; Croatian: ''Mohač''; ; ; ; ) is a town in Baranya County, Hungary, on the right bank of the Danube. Etymology The name probably comes from the Slavic ''*Mъchačь'',''*Mocháč'': ''mъchъ'' (moss, Hungarian ''moha'' is a loanword ...

to Udvar/ Duboševica border crossing where the route crosses to

. The Hungarian section of the E73 is long, and all but the last has been upgraded to the motorway standards. The final section of the motorway to the Croatian border is planned to extend to a new border crossing at Ivándárda. The E73 route through Croatia starts at Duboševica border crossing, following the D7 state road to

Beli Manastir Beli Manastir ( sr-Cyrl, Бели Манастир, ) is a town in eastern Croatia. It is the principal town of the Croatian part of Baranja, located in the Osijek-Baranja County. Name The name means "white monastery" in Serbo-Croatian. Origina ...

and

Osijek Osijek () is the fourth-largest city in Croatia, with a population of 96,848 in 2021. It is the largest city and the economic and cultural centre of the eastern Croatian region of Slavonia, as well as the administrative centre of Osijek-Baranja ...

. South of Beli Manastir, there is a junction with the European route E662, signposted as the D212 state road. The D7 road carries the E73 through Osijek, to the southern city bypass, an expressway signposted as the D2 state road providing a connection to the A5 motorway to the west of Osijek. The A5 is scheduled for extension north to the Hungarian border, where it would link up with the Hungarian M6 motorway. The A5 extends south to the Sredanci interchange whee it meets the A3 motorway, which carries the E70. The A5 continues further south to the border of

and Svilaj border crossing at the

Sava The Sava, is a river in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, a right-bank and the longest tributary of the Danube. From its source in Slovenia it flows through Croatia and along its border with Bosnia and Herzegovina, and finally reac ...

River. First segment of the E73 through Croatia, between Hungary and Bosnia and Herzegovina, is long, including of motorways. Kozarac-sjever

The E73 route in Bosnia and Herzegovina starts at Svilaj border crossing, following the A1 motorway for to Odžak. Near Odžak the E73 switches from the A1 motorway to a short road connector which carries the E73 to the M-14.1 road. The M-14.1 road carries the E73 to Vukosavlje, located to the north of

Modriča Modriča ( sr-cyrl, Модрича) is a town and municipality in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2013 census, the town has a population of 10,137 inhabitants, while the municipality has a population of 25,720 inhabitants. Hist ...

where it meets the M-17 road. The M-17 road carries the E73 past Modriča,

Doboj Doboj ( sr-Cyrl, Добој, ) is a city in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated on the banks of the Bosna (river), Bosna river, in the northern region of Republika Srpska. As of 2013, it has a population of 71,441 inhabita ...

, Maglaj,

Žepče Žepče ( sr-cyrl, Жепче) is a town and municipality located in Zenica-Doboj Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated in central Bosnia and Herzegovina, between Doboj and Zenica. ...

and

Zenica Zenica ( ; ) is a city in Bosnia and Herzegovina and an administrative and economic center of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina's Zenica-Doboj Canton. It is located in the Bosna (river), Bosna river valley, about north of Sarajevo. The ...

. In Zenica, the E73 switches back to the A1 motorway and forms a junction with European routes E661 and E761. The latter and the E73 are concurrent between Zenica and Sarajevo, where the E761 diverges towards

Višegrad Višegrad ( sr-cyrl, Вишеград, ) is a town and municipality in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. It rests at the confluence of the Drina and the Rzav (Drina), Rzav river. As of 2013, the municipality has a population of 10,668 in ...

. The European route E762 also forms a junction with the E73 in Sarajevo, heading towards

Nikšić Nikšić (Cyrillic script, Cyrillic: Никшић, ), is the second largest city in Montenegro, with a total population of 32,046 (2023 census) located in the west of the country, in the centre of the spacious Nikšić field at the foot of Trebjesa ...

Montenegro , image_flag = Flag of Montenegro.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Montenegro.svg , coa_size = 80 , national_motto = , national_anthem = () , image_map = Europe-Mont ...

. The A1 motorway carries the E71 near Zenica,

Kakanj Kakanj ( sr-cyrl, Какањ) is a town and municipality located in Zenica-Doboj Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the Europe's oldest continuously inhabitted settlement. As of 2013, ...

Visoko Visoko ( sr-cyrl, Високо, ) is a city located in the Zenica-Doboj Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2013, the municipality had a population of 39,938 inhabitants with 11,205 livi ...

Ilijaš Ilijaš is a town and municipality located in Sarajevo Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is located northwest of the inner city of Sarajevo, making it ''de facto'' a town and suburb of Sara ...

Vogošća Vogošća (Cyrillic: Bогошћа) is a town and a municipality located in Sarajevo Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The municipality is located about 6 kilometers north of the city of Saraj ...

, Sarajevo and

Tarčin Tarčin is a village in the municipality of Hadžići, Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is located around 30 km west of Sarajevo in the Sarajevo Canton within the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. European route E73, a European highway betwee ...

. In Bradina, the E73 once more switches to the M-17 road which carries it past

Konjic Konjic ( sr-Cyrl, Коњиц) is a List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, city located in the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, one of two entities that make up Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is located in no ...

, Jablanica,

Mostar Mostar () is a city and the administrative centre of Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the historical capital of Herzegovina. Mostar is situated on the Neretva Riv ...

and

Čapljina Čapljina ( cyrl, Чапљина, ) is a city located in Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is located on the border with Croatia a mere from the Adriatic Sea. The rive ...

. The route crosses back into Croatia south of Čapljina. Total length of the E73 route through Bosnia and Herzegovina is long. The southernmost segment of the E73 route is located in Croatia, spanning between

Metković Metković () is a town in the Dubrovnik-Neretva County of Croatia, located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the river Neretva and on the border with Bosnia and Herzegovina. Climate Since records began in 1997, the highest temper ...

border crossing and Opuzen, where the route physically signposted as the D9 state road, connects to the D8 state road (

European route E65 European route E65 is a north-south Class-A European route that begins in Malmö, Sweden and ends in Chania, Greece. The road is about in length. After crossing the Baltic Sea, it proceeds on land from north to south through Poland, the Czech Re ...

). The D8 connects the E73 route to the port of Ploče to the north and

Dubrovnik Dubrovnik, historically known as Ragusa, is a city in southern Dalmatia, Croatia, by the Adriatic Sea. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations in the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean, a Port, seaport and the centre of the Dubrovni ...

to the south. Furthermore, the section has a junction to the D62 state road providing a link to the A1 motorway and the Croatian motorway network in the south of the country. This section completes the total length of the E73 in Croatia of .

Toll

Various sections of the E73 are tolled, using a range of toll collection systems. Motorways in Hungary are tolled using an

electronic toll collection Electronic toll collection (ETC) is a wireless system to automatically collect the usage fee or Road pricing, toll charged to vehicles using toll roads, HOV lanes, toll bridges, and toll tunnels. It is a faster alternative which is replacing Tol ...

(ETC) system with charges differing for various categories of vehicles and length of period when the e-

vignette Vignette may refer to: * Vignette (entertainment), a sketch in a sketch comedy * Vignette (graphic design), decorative designs in books (originally in the form of leaves and vines) to separate sections or chapters * Vignette (literature), short, i ...

is valid. Croatian motorways are also generally tolled, using a

ticket system A ticket system, also known as a closed toll collection system, is a system used on some toll roads in which a user pays a toll rate based on the distance traveled from their originating entrance to their destination exit. The correct toll is d ...

. All sections of the A5 motorway are tolled, as well as the A3 section concurrent with the E73. As of August 2011, the toll charged along the Croatian section of the E73 route between various toll plazas at each motorway exit, varies depending on the length of route travelled and the vehicle classification in Croatia. The toll is payable in euros and by major credit and debit cards. A prepaid ETC system is also used. State roads in Croatia are not tolled. In Bosnia and Herzegovina, only the A1 motorway is tolled at two mainline toll plazas and further toll plazas at each motorway exit between the mainline toll plazas using a ticket system.

History

UNECE was formed in 1947, and their first major act to improve transportation was a joint UN declaration no. 1264, the Declaration on the Construction of Main International Traffic Arteries, signed in Geneva on September 16, 1950, which defined the first E-road network. This declaration was amended several times before November 15, 1975, when it was replaced by the European Agreement on Main International Traffic Arteries or "AGR", which set up a route numbering system and improved standards for roads in the list. The AGR went through several changes, with the last one, as of 2011, in 2008. Reorganization of the E-roads network of 1975 and 1983 redefined the E73 designation previously associated with

Cologne Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city pr ...

– Hamm road and assigned it to Budapest–Osijek–Sarajevo–Metković route. Entrance to Zenica

The entire E73 route was given further importance in June 1997 at the Pan-European Transport Conference in

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

, when the section was made a part of the Pan-European Corridor Vc, spanning Budapest and Metković via Osijek and Sarajevo. This event spurred modernization of the route in all the countries where it is located, and since 1997s, one third of the route, previously developed as a two-lane road only, was upgraded to the motorway standards, with plans to upgrade the remainder of the route as well. E73-Mostar-DSCN1117

The first Hungarian motorway section along the M6/E73 route was completed between

Érd Érd (; ; , ) is a town in Pest County, Budapest metropolitan area, Hungary. It is a city with county rights. History The area has been inhabited since ancient times. Archaeological findings indicate that prehistoric humans lived here 50,000 year ...

and

in 2006 after the Pan-European Corridor Vc was given development priority following the Helsinki conference. In 2008, the new motorway section was connected to the M0 Budapest ring motorway, and in 2010, the M6 was extended to Bóly. The final section of the motorway to the Croatian border is planned to extend to a new border crossing at Ivándárda, where the M6 shall connect to the Croatian motorway network. In Croatia, the first motorway section completed along the E73 route was the Sredanci–

Đakovo Đakovo (; , , sr-Cyrl, Ђаково) is a town in the region of Slavonia, Croatia. Đakovo is the centre of the fertile and rich Đakovo region ( ). Etymology The etymology of the name is the (diákos) in Slavic form đak (pupil). The Hungar ...

section of the A5, completed in 2007, which was extended further to Osijek in 2009. As of August 2011, the A5 was scheduled to be extended north across

Drava The Drava or Drave (, ; ; ; ; ), historically known as the Dravis or Dravus, is a river in southern Central Europe.

River to Beli Manastir and the Branjin Vrh border crossing to Hungary where it shall connect to the M6. In 2015, a short section of the A5 between Sredanci and Svilaj interchanges was opened, followed by Svilaj border crossing and bridge across the Sava River in 2021. Prior to the opening of the Svilaj Bridge, the E73 followed the A3 motorway between Sredanci and Velika Kopanica interchanges and the D7 road between Velika Kopanica and Slavonski Šamac, crossing the Sava River at the Šamac border crossing. The A10 motorway is planned to connect Bosnia and Herzegovina to the Croatian motorway system through the A1 motorway and the port of Ploče. The segment of the route through Bosnia and Herzegovina is largely in various stages of planning and development, especially those sections adjacent to the single existing stretch of the A1 motorway near Sarajevo and to planned sections of the Croatian A5 and A10 motorways. In the early 2000s, the A1 motorway received much media attention in Bosnia and Herzegovina as it was to be the first motorway-standard road in the country. The slow pace of building resulted in the Corridor Vc being parodied as "Corridor WC" in the famous TV satire '' Nadreality Show''.Archived a
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Wayback Machine

Concurrencies

{, class="wikitable" , - , align=center style="background:#f2f2f2;" , Country , align=center style="background:#f2f2f2;" , km , align=center style="background:#f2f2f2;" , Route , align=center style="background:#f2f2f2;" , Control
cities , align=center style="background:#f2f2f2;" , Connecting
routes , align=center style="background:#f2f2f2;" , Notes , - , rowspan=3 ,

, nowrap, 0-176 , nowrap style="align=center , M6 ,

, M0
M60 , The northern terminus of the E73 is in an interchange of the M6 and the M0 near Budapest. Northbound E73 traffic leaving the segment defaults onto the M0 Budapest ring motorway. The connecting M0 motorway section is concurrent with European routes E60, E71 and E75. , - , nowrap, 176-182 , nowrap style="align=center , 57 , Bóly

, , Two-lane road with

s. , - , nowrap, 182-194 , nowrap style="align=center , 56 , Mohács
Udvar , , Two-lane road with at-grade intersections. The southernmost section of the E73 in Hungary. , - , rowspan=3 ,

, 194-237 , nowrap style="align=center , D7 , Duboševica

, D517
D212 , Two-lane road with at-grade intersections. , - , 237-244 , nowrap style="align=center , D2 , Osijek , , Osijek bypass. A two-lane, limited access expressway with grade separated intersections. , - , 244-302 , nowrap style="align=center , A5 , Osijek
Svilaj , A3 , The current northern terminus of the A5 motorway is the Osijek interchange where the northbound A5/E73 traffic defaults to the D2 road. , - , rowspan=5,

, 302-317 , nowrap style="align=center , A1 , Donji Svilaj
Odžak , M-14.1 , The southern are a two-lane road connector with at-grade intersections. , - , 317-320 , nowrap style="align=center , M-14.1 , Odžak

, , Two-lane road with at-grade intersections. , - , 320-442 , nowrap style="align=center , M-17 , Modriča

, nowrap , M-4
M-15 , Two-lane road with at-grade intersections. , - , 442-531 , nowrap style="align=center , A1 , Zenica

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ), ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'' is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 2 ...

, M-18 , A motorway, concurrent with E761 route between Zenica and Sarajevo. , - , 531-668 , nowrap style="align=center , M-17 , Tarčin

Doljani , nowrap , M-16.2
M-6.1
M-6 , Two-lane road with at-grade intersections. , - , Croatia , 668-679 , nowrap style="align=center , D9 ,

Opuzen , D62
D8 , Two-lane road with at-grade intersections.
Northbound E73 traffic leaving the segment crosses to Bosnia and Herzegovina at Metković border crossing. Southbound E73 traffic leaving the segment switches to the Croatian D8 state road (

) in Opuzen. Even though the UNECE specification of the route notes Metković as the last control city of the E73, the entire D9 route to Opuzen is signposted as the E73.
The southernmost segment of the E73.

References

External links

UN Economic Commission for Europe: Overall Map of E-road Network (2007)
{{E-road 73 E073 E073 E073 Toll roads Pan-European corridors