Emergency Services Win Right For Exclusive
Lane Through Escazú Toll Station
It's been a long and hard fought battle, but
the emergency services and the public came
up winners with the Sala Constitucional
(Constitutional Court) decision handed down
on Friday in favour of the Cuerpo de
Bomberos and the Cruz Roja, to have free and
quick access through the Escazú toll booths
on the autopista Próspero Fernández.
The battle began last June when Autopistas
del Sol, the concessionaire of the San José
- Caldera highway insisted that emergency
vehicles - fire trucks, ambulances, police
and even the Policía de Tránsito (traffic
police) - pay the tolls at Escazú, even when
responding to an emergency.
The requirement was lessened in October when
Autopistas gave in to pressure by the
Ministerio de Obras Públicas y Transportes (MOPT)
and the public outcry, allowing emergency
vehicles to pass through the tolls free of
charge, but requiring a form to be filled
out.
In one report, several traffic police
officials on motorcycles, with lights
flashing and sirens blazing, can be seen on
video stopped at the toll booth, filling out
a form - individually - while responding to
a traffic accident some 800 metres ahead of
them.
See report here.
Hector Chavez, head of the Bomberos
(firefighters), was one of the most vocal
and the first to appeal to the Sala.
The Sala Constitucional decision orders the
Autopistas del Sol to provide an exclusive
lane for emergency vehicles.
Although the decision was made on the
appeals of the Bomberos and Cruz Roja (Red
Cross), it will affect all emergency
vehicles passing through the toll station.
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