Tiranë, Qarku i Durrësit, Albania

Economy | Transport | Education

🇦🇱 Tirana or Tiranë is the capital and largest city of Albania. It is located in the centre of the country, enclosed by mountains and hills with Dajti rising to the east and a slight valley to the north-west overlooking the Adriatic Sea in the distance. Due to its location at the Plain of Tirana and the close proximity to the Mediterranean Sea, the city is particularly influenced by a Mediterranean seasonal climate. It is among the wettest and sunniest cities in Europe, with 2,544 hours of sun per year.

Tirana was founded as a city in 1614 by the Ottoman Albanian general Sylejman Pasha Bargjini and flourished by then around the Old Mosque and the türbe. The area that today corresponds to the city's territory has been continuously inhabited since the Iron Age. It was inhabited by Illyrians, and was most likely the core of the Illyrian Kingdom of the Taulantii, which in Classical Antiquity was centred in the hinterland of Epidamnus. Following the Illyrian Wars it was annexed by Rome and became an integral part of the Roman Empire. The heritage of that period is still evident and represented by the Mosaics of Tirana. Later, in the 5th and 6th centuries, an Early Christian basilica was built around this site.

After the Roman Empire split into East and West in the 4th century, its successor the Byzantine Empire took control over most of Albania, and built the Petrelë Castle in the reign of Justinian I. The city was fairly unimportant until the 20th century, when the Congress of Lushnjë proclaimed it as Albania's capital, after the Albanian Declaration of Independence in 1912.

Classified as a gamma-world-city, Tirana is the most important economic, financial, political and trade centre in Albania due to its significant location in the centre of the country and its modern air, maritime, rail and road transportation. It is the seat of power of the Government of Albania, with the official residences of the President and Prime Minister of Albania, and the Parliament of Albania. The city was announced as the European Youth Capital for 2022.

Economy Tirana is the heart of the economy of Albania and the most industrialised and economically fastest growing region in Albania. Of the main sectors, the tertiary sector is the most important for the economy of Tirana and employs more than 68% of work force of Tirana. 26% of the working population makes up the secondary sector followed by the primary sector with only 5%.

The city began to develop at the beginning of the 16th century as it was part of the Ottoman Empire, when a bazaar was established, and its craftsmen manufactured silk and cotton fabrics, leather, ceramics and iron, silver and gold artefacts. In the 20th century, the city and its surrounding areas expanded rapidly and became the most heavily industrialised region of the country.

The most significant contribution is made by the tertiary sector which has developed considerably since the fall of communism in Albania. Forming the financial centre of the country, the financial industry is a major component of the city's tertiary sector and remains in good conditions overall due to privatization and the commendable monetary policy. All of the most important financial institutions, such as the Bank of Albania and the Albanian Stock Exchange are centred in Tirana as well as most of the banking companies such as the Banka Kombëtare Tregtare, Raiffeisen Bank, Credins Bank, Intesa Sanpaolo Bank and Tirana Bank.

The telecommunication industry represents another major and growing contributor to the sector. A rapid development occurred as well as after the end of communism and decades of isolationism mainly due to the new national policy of reform and opening up sped up the industry's development. Vodafone, Telekom Albania and Eagle are the leading telecommunication providers in Tirana, as in all the country.

The tourism industry of the city has expanded in recent years to become a vital component of the economy. Tirana has been officially dubbed as 'The Place Beyond Belief' by local authorities. The increasing number of international arrivals at the Tirana International Airport and Port of Durrës from across Europe, Australia and Asia has rapidly grown the number of foreign visitors in the city.

The largest hotels of the city are the Tirana International Hotel, Maritim Plaza Tirana both situated in the heart of the city near Scanderbeg Square, and the Hyatt-owned luxury Mak Hotel Tirana located next to the Air Albania Stadium, where Mariott Tirana Hotel is also planned to open. Other major hotels present in central Tirana include the Rogner Hotel, Hilton Garden Inn Tirana, Xheko Imperial Hotel, Best Western Premier Ark Hotel, and Mondial Hotel.

Transport Tirana is served by Nënë Tereza International Airport, which is simultaneously the premier air gateway to the country. The airport was officially named in honour of the Albanian Roman Catholic nun and missionary, Mother Teresa. It connects Tirana with many destinations in different countries across Europe, Africa and Asia. The airport carried more than 3.3 million passengers in 2019 and is also the principal hub for the country's flag carrier, Air Albania.

The city's geographical location in the centre of Albania has long established the city as an integral terminus for the national road transportation, thus connecting the city to all parts of Albania and the neighbouring countries. The Rruga Shtetërore 1 (SH1) connects Tirana with Shkodër and Montenegro in the north, and constitutes an essential section of the proposed Adriatic–Ionian motorway. The Rruga Shtetërore 2 (SH2) continues in the west and provides direct connection to Durrës on the Adriatic Sea. The Rruga Shtetërore 3 (SH3) is being transformed to the Autostrada 3 (A3) and follows the ancient Via Egnatia. It significantly constitutes a major section of the Pan-European Corridor VIII and links the city with Elbasan, Korçë and Greece in the south. Tirana is further connected, through the Milot interchange in the north-west, with Kosovo following as part of the Autostrada 1 (A1).

During the communist regime in Albania, a plan for the construction of a ring road around Tirana arose in 1989s with no implementation until the 2010s. It is of major importance, especially concerning the demographic growth of the metropolitan region of Tirana as well as the importance of the economy. Although, constructions for the nowadays completed southern section of the ring road started in 2011, however, the northern and eastern sections are still in the planning process.

Rail lines of Hekurudha Shqiptare (HSH) connected Tirana with all of the major cities of Albania, including Durrës, Shkodër and Vlorë. In 2013, the Tirana Railway Station was closed and moved to Kashar by the government of Tirana in order to create space for the Bulevardi i Ri project. The new Tirana Station will be constructed in Laprakë, which is projected to be a multifunctional terminal for rail, tram and bus transportation. Furthermore, a new rail line from Tirana through Nënë Tereza International Airport to Durrës is planned to be constructed.

In 2012, Tirana municipality published a report according to which a project on the construction of two tram lines was under evaluation. The tram lines would have a total length of 16.7 km (10.4 miles). The public transport in Tirana is, for now, focused only in the city centre, so that the people living in the suburbs have fewer or no public transport connections.

Under the plan, the two tram lines will intersect in the Skanderbeg Square. The public transport system in Tirana is ten bus lines served by 250 to 260 buses every day.

During the administration of mayor Erion Veliaj, the government of Tirana has significantly increased the creation and expansion of a cycling infrastructure in the city in order to reduce traffic congestion as well as to improve the sustainable transportation. Ecovolis was launched in 2011 offering rental services for bicycles at different centrally located stations for a small fee. The international bicycle sharing system, Mobike, launched its operations on 8 June 2018 by deploying 4000 bicycles in the city.

Education Tirana has the highest concentration of institutions of tertiary education in Albania, consisting of numerous academies, colleges and universities. Most prominent among these is the University of Tirana with campuses around the city and more than 28,000 students from all backgrounds. The Polytechnic University of Tirana is another distinguished institution and also the most renowned engineering and technical university in the country. The four other public institutions in Tirana are the University of Arts, University of Agriculture, University of Medicine and University of Sports.

Europe/Tirane/Qarku_i_Durresit 

Tiranë has a population of over 421,000 people. Tiranë also forms the centre of the wider Tiranë metropolitan area which has a population of over 764,000 people. For the location of Tiranë see: Tirana.

To set up a UBI Lab for Tiranë see: https://www.ubilabnetwork.org Twitter: https://twitter.com/UBILabNetwork

Text Atribution: Wikipedia Text under CC-BY-SA license

Antipodal to Tiranë is: -160.171,-41.318

Locations Near: Tiranë 19.8295,41.3177

🇦🇱 Tirana 19.83,41.318 d: 0  

🇦🇱 Kamëz 19.767,41.383 d: 9  

🇦🇱 Kavajë 19.55,41.183 d: 27.7  

🇦🇱 Elbasan 20.092,41.113 d: 31.6  

🇦🇱 Durrës 19.44,41.32 d: 32.5  

🇦🇱 Lezhë 19.633,41.767 d: 52.5  

🇦🇱 Fier 19.55,40.717 d: 70.8  

🇦🇱 Shkodër 19.517,42.071 d: 87.7  

🇦🇱 Vlorë 19.483,40.467 d: 99  

🇦🇱 Kukës 20.417,42.083 d: 98.1  

Antipodal to: Tiranë -160.171,-41.318

🇹🇴 Nuku'alofa -175.216,-21.136 d: 17362.8  

🇵🇫 Papeete -149.566,-17.537 d: 17183.8  

🇦🇸 Pago Pago -170.701,-14.279 d: 16841  

🇼🇸 Apia -171.76,-13.833 d: 16759.6  

🇺🇸 Hilo -155.089,19.725 d: 13207.2  

🇺🇸 Maui -156.446,20.72 d: 13106.1  

🇺🇸 Maui County -156.617,20.868 d: 13090.7  

🇺🇸 Kahului -156.466,20.891 d: 13087.2  

🇺🇸 Wailuku -156.505,20.894 d: 13087.2  

🇺🇸 Honolulu -157.85,21.3 d: 13048.2  

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