Bega Canal
About the Bega Canal
After the peace signing in Karlovac, under the supervision of Count Florimund Mercy, Austria began the construction of a canal upstream of Timișoara that would transport the timber needed for the construction of settlements and industrial facilities in the agricultural region of Banat. At the same time, work began on the construction of a 70-kilometer-long canal between Timișoara and Klek – Navigable Bega. The Bega Canal became an important transport waterway, which was further improved throughout history by the construction of locks.
The Reconstruction of the Bega Canal
Thanks to the “Repairing of the Navigation Infrastructure on Bega Canal” project, carried out within the Interreg IPA Romania-Serbia Cross-Border Cooperation Programme, funds were provided for the repairing of the locks in Klek and Srpski Itebej, as well as for the construction of the wharf in Zrenjanin.
The total value of the works on the revitalisation and construction of these facilities was around two million euros, of which 85 percent was financed from the European Union grants, while 15 percent was provided by the Public Water Management Company Vode Vojvodine. In addition to the repairing of the locks, the sluices were also renovated, as well as the building complexes in Klek and Srpski Itebej.
This is one of two strategic projects that were financed for the first time within the Romania-Serbia Cross-Border Cooperation Programme 2014-2020.
Also, through the “Repairing of the Navigation Infrastructure on Bega Canal” project, the left bank of Bega was improved and a floating dock was built for the mooring of recreational vessels in Zrenjanin.
Another significant result of the Repairing of the Navigation Infrastructure on Bega is the construction of a section of the dual-purpose bicycle path along the canal itself, from Klek to the Romanian border. The construction of this trail opened a corridor for bicycle traffic from Timişoara to Zrenjanin, which significantly contributed to the development of bicycle tourism in all the places through which this path passes.