Residents of Rohrmoser
Upset With Their Well
Known Neighbour,
President Arias
Costa Rican president,
Oscar Arias, has a new
problem on his hands,
one very close to home,
as neighbours of
Rohrmoser are fed up
with the constant
closures of the
"boulevard" that are
part of the security
measures by his security
team.
The closures are part of
daily life around the
president's house and
the boulevard, the main
thoroughfare from the
Sabana to points west.
Area residents have to
constantly detour a
block west and east of
the president's house
which fronts onto the
boulevard, as the Fuerza
Pública completely
closes off the boulevard
at times when the
president is receiving
dignitaries and/or
moving to and from
public events.
The situation is worse
when the closures are in
effect during morning
and afternoon rush
hours, when traffic on
the boulevard is almost
double that during the
day and the closures
adds time to travel
through the area,
causing traffic chaos.
The last closure was
Wednesday when the
Fuerza Pública closed
off one side of the road
for three hours and a
driver slams into
another vehicle to avoid
running over two police
officials and a
motorcycle, who slammed
into a fence to avoid
being hit.
Those involved in the
accident are looking for
someone to take
responsibility for the
damage and injuries.
However, the ball seems
to be passed around from
authority to autority
with no one coming
forward with any
acceptance of liability.
Mishelle Mitchel, the
president's press
secretary, says that the
closures are to ensure
the president's
security.
When the boulevard is
closed off, no warning
is given and drivers are
faced with a metal
barrier across the four
lanes of the boulevard.
The Wednesday was caused
due to the fact that the
closure is effected by
the Fuerza Pública and
the president's security
personnel and not the
Policía de Tránsito
(traffic police), who
place cones and signs to
warn of a road closure.
The director of Policía
de Tránsito, German
Marín, acknowledges that
the closures are a
constant problem to
traffic flow in the
area, causing congestion
on one of main roads.
Passing through the area
means that one has to be
prepared for the road
closure at any moment. |
