The President of the Republic, Ricardo Lagos, and the Minister of Public Works, Jaime Estévez, inaugurated this Wednesday the new Vespucio North Express urban Motorway, whose stretch runs along the current route between Avenida El Salto and the Ruta 78, which will benefit directly 8 districts on the north and west sides of Santiago.
The fourth urban motorway to be put into service, with a cost of 250US$ million, will benefit more than two million people and will reduce travel times by over 50%, therefore contributing to the urban development of the city and improving links between this vast metropolitan area for the districts of Huechuraba, Recoleta, Conchalí, Quilicura, Renca, Cerro Navia, Pudahuel and Maipú.
Along with shortening distances, the new infrastructure shall also help with the integration of Santiago, allowing a quick and safe circulation for the thousands of vehicles which daily transit the Northern Américo Vespucio.
Any person; an office worker, a worker, etc, who lives in El Salto and who travels daily to work, for example, to the Business Park in the Airport shall be able to save around 15 minutes daily, which is the equivalent of a day a month. Therefore in one year, they will have saved more than 12 days in travel time. All of this will improve their quality of life; they will rest and relax more, have more family time and will essentially gain time. This is the sense of doing things and constructing, emphasized the Minister Estevez.
President Ricardo Lagos recalled that when the first stone was laid in this Project, he had said that what was going to be invested in this Project was equivalent to what Chile invested in all Public Works in 1990. This is the jump that has been made in this time he reiterated.
The figures which reflect the magnitude of what has been done in all this time: $7,400 million in all the concession system, improving and tarmaccing more than 2,400Km over the length and breadth of Chile. Today, we are delivering a country far different to which we received in 1990, added the Head of State.
In this way, the authorities summarized the work of diverse institutions and an important number of people who, over a period of more than 10 years, were able to carry out dozens of public-private projects, and hence free resources of a greater social character such as fishing boats, rural drinking water services and basic pathways. A task which would have been impossible 15 years previous, only dependent on fiscal resources and without the concession system.
Reduction in Travel Time, Efficiency and Rain Water Collectors.
The Works meant an increase from two to three express lanes in each direction, also considering the construction of toll-free service lanes destined to local transit. Said works, also included the construction of four bridges and 20 other structures amongst junction areas, level crossings, 25 closed, lit footbridges and the total elimination of traffic lights over the 29Km of the concession.
Regarding safety, the new motorway has a system of intelligent traffic control, equipped with more than 30 control cameras, 40 emergency telephones and 22 electronic message panels. These technologies are connected to the modern Traffic Control Center which is located in the Headquarters of the Concessionaire.
The Project also considered the construction of 50Km of rainwater collectors to evacuate rainwater along the length of the motorway, which will contribute to avoid flooding and mitigate the effects of winter in the residential and rural areas which were historically vulnerable to the effects of the rain.
We use cookies by Google Analytics for statistical purposes. 
