Expressway S2 (Poland)


Expressway S2 is a short highway in Poland, serving as the southern section of the Warsaw Express Ring Road. Conceptually forming one continuous route with motorway A2, it was initially planned as a part of it, however after local Warsaw residents objected to the plans of an inner-city motorway, the proposed road was downgraded to an expressway. The western half of the road was opened to traffic in 2013, while the eastern half was opened in 2020 and 2021.

Chronology

Construction of the first phase of the project was divided into two sections. Work on a 3.9 km stretch between Warszawa Lotnisko junction and Puławska junction at the eastern end of this phase of the project began in September 2009, while construction of the other, 11.1 km long section between the western Konotopa junction and Warszawa Lotnisko junction, began in the Summer of 2010.
Both sections were scheduled to be completed in mid 2012 in time for the Euro 2012 football championships, however this deadline was not met. The S2 Expressway was eventually opened in a number of stages, beginning in the west at Konotopa junction in August 2013, with further sections opening in September 2013, linking the road with expressway S79 leading to Warsaw Chopin Airport. The final part of this phase of the project up to Puławska junction was opened in late September 2013.
The second phase of the project took the expressway S2 east of Puławska across the Vistula river, through the Anna Jagiellon Bridge, connecting the route with the eastern part of the Warsaw Express Ring Road and the continuation of the motorway A2 eastwards. The design-and-build tender for this section was announced on December 18, 2013, with completion date specified as 41 months from the date contract is signed. The contract was signed in December 2015, with completion planned for December 2020. The final section including the Ursynów Tunnel opened on 20 December 2021.
The contracts were:

Future developments

From 2025, on the section between Wilanow and Lubelska junctions, average speed measurement devices will be installed to reduce noise pollution.

Ursynów tunnel

The Expressway S2 Tunnel or Ursynów Tunnel is a part of the S2 expressway in Warsaw. The tunnel began construction on 1 March 2017 and opened on 20 December 2021. The contractor was Astaldi SpA.
As of 2021, the tunnel is the longest road tunnel in Poland. From the west, the tunnel entry begins at Węzeł Ursynów Zachód junction. In the east, the tunnel joins the Węzeł Ursynów Wschód junction. The tunnel is around in length, and crosses underneath the pre-existing tunnel of the Warsaw Metro Line M1. Each of the two roadways has a width of 14.5 meters, with three traffic lanes each, and a hard shoulder 3.75 meters in width. Each roadway has a 1-meter wide emergency path.