The Republic of Croatia has an extension of 56.538 km² and a population of 4,5 millions of inhabitants. Its continental border is long 2.028 km, while the length of its coastal border is 950 km.
Croatia borders on Slovenia, Hungary, Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro), Bosnia-Herzegovina and Italy.
Geographically speaking, Croatia is lined on one side by the Adriatic Sea, whose total coastal length is 1.778 Km and, on the other side, Croatia is surrounded by the Pannonian Valley, including the rivers Sava, Drava and Danube.
Historically and geographically, Croatia is oriented towards Central Europe and to Mediterranean Sea, holding a key position in the connection with the rest of Europe.
Croatia is divided in 4 macro-regions, including 4 towns, two continental: Zagreb (the capital) and Osijek, and two coastal: Split and Rijeka.
The Pan-European corridors passing through the territory of the Republic of Croatia are the following:
Vb Budapest-Zagreb-Rijeka;
Vc Budapest-Osijek-(Sarajevo)-Ploce;
X Ljubljana-Zagreb-Beograd;
Xa Graz-Maribor and Zagreb.
The idea of a new Adriatic-Ionic corridor, starting from (Trieste) - Rijeka- Split-Dubrovnik in Croatia, passing through Montenegro and Albania and ending finally in Greece is currently being examined.
HISTORY
Croatia is mainly a tourist, industrial and agricultural country. Its level of motorization is of 1 light vehicle on 6 inhabitants (in 1995).
The total length of the public motorway's network is 28.274,4 km, divided in 7.466,8 km of national roads and 20.807,9 km of regional and local roads.
The length of the motorway's and semi-motorway's network is 731,2 km (in 2003). The first motorway Zagreb-Karlovac (40 km) has been opened to the traffic in 1972.
250 km of motorways and 100 km of semi-motorways have been built during the period 1970-1990.
Between 1991 and 1997, only 76 km of motorways and 53 km of semi-motorways could be realised.
In 1997 the Parliament of the Republic of Croatia has approved the Strategy of Development relating to the "Physical planning" of the Republic of Croatia. This Strategy, based on traffic typology, on economic needs, demographic evolution as well as on territory configuration, defines 18 main national motorways, classified in 3 priority groups.
In the first group there are the following axes:
 Motorway of the region Primorsko-Goranska and Prigorsko-Medjimurska (E-65, D-3)
RIJEKA-KARLOVAC-ZAGREB-VARAZDIN-GORICAN
Motorway of the region of Zagorje and of the region of Licko-dalmatinska
E-59, E-71, D-1, D-8 et D-27/54
ZADAR-PLITVICE-KARLOVAC-ZAGREB-MACELJ
Motorway of the region of Posavina E-70, D-4
BREGANA-ZAGREB-SLAVONSKI BROD-LIPOVAC
Adriatic Motorway
4.a Main part E-65, D-80, D-8
RUPA-RIJEKA-ZADAR-SPLIT-DUBROVNIK
4.b Istrian Part E-751, D-21, D-3
DRAGONJA-PULA-RIJEKA
Motorway of the region Slavonsko-neretvanska E-73, D-9, D-7
PLOCE-METKOVIC et SLAVONSKI SAMAC-OSIJEK-BELI MANASTIR
Road connecting Split and the inland of Dalmatia and Herzegovina D-1, D-60, D-220
SPLIT-SINJ
a) via TRILJ to LIVNO and to IMOTSKI et MOSTAR
b) via KNIN to the region of Lika and to the Western Bosnia.
FUTURE TRENDS
The opening of the concessions system, started by the government's decision in September 1995, made possible to have today three Concessions companies, which are at present responsible for the road management and exploitation in Croatia.
One of them is the Concession company "BINA-Istra" d.d., to which, in 1995, have been granted 145 km of motorways and semi-motorways in Istria (the Istrian part of the Adriatic Motorway).
The other Concession company "Autocesta Rijeka-Zagreb" d.d., set up with the State funds, and managing about 150 km of motorways and semi-motorways.
The third Concession company is "Hrvatske autoceste", S.A.R.L. (HAC), created in April 2001 and owned at 100% by the Croatian State. This company, whose responsibility is to assure the financing, the building and the exploitation of all the motorway's and semi-motorway's network in Croatia (out of the concession system), is financed by the fuel taxes, the tolls, the loans and manages around 775 km of motorways and semi-motorways.
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