Northern Bypass Opens: El Menzah and La Marsa Property Prices Surge

The final 4-kilometre stretch of the Northern Bypass Road opened to traffic on 28 June, cutting travel time from El Menzah to the port at La Goulette by twelve minutes during peak hours.

Residents and estate agents report that the improved link has already lifted demand for apartments within 800 metres of the new interchange at Route de Bizerte. The Ministry of Equipment had warned in 2024 that the old alignment through Bab Saadoun created daily bottlenecks exceeding 45 minutes; the bypass removes that constraint for thousands of daily commuters heading to the central business district.

Neighbourhoods seeing the fastest gains

In El Menzah 5, three blocks east of the new exit, two-bedroom flats listed at 245 000 Tunisian dinars in January now carry asking prices of 278 000 dinars, according to listings filed with the Tunis Chamber of Real Estate Agents. Further north in La Marsa, plots along Avenue de la République that back onto the upgraded feeder road have risen from 1 850 dinars per square metre to 2 150 dinars in the same period. Both districts sit inside the Greater Tunis master plan zone where the municipality has fast-tracked building permits for buildings under six storeys.

The bypass also passes within 300 metres of the existing TGM station at La Goulette, allowing residents to reach the Medina on foot or by short tram ride. Local developer Societé Immobilière de Tunisie has already submitted plans for a 92-unit residence on land it purchased near the station last year.

Price records and transaction data

Land registry figures released by the Ministry of State Property on 4 July show 142 sales in El Menzah and La Marsa between April and June, up from 97 in the same quarter last year. Average sale prices reached 2 040 dinars per square metre, the highest quarterly reading for those postcodes since 2019. Agents at local firm Agence Immobilière Carthage note that cash buyers from Sfax and Sousse now account for one in three transactions, citing the new road as the decisive factor.

Buyers who want to act before the next price round should check listings within 500 metres of the Route de Bizerte interchange and verify flood-zone status with the Tunis municipality planning office before signing any preliminary contract.