New Road To Caldera Stalled Again
Another stone on the new road Caldera has stalled the project again. This time it is in the form of a an administrative problem that will impede the start of construction next scheduled for next month.

Luis Diego Vargas, vice minister of Concessiones, said yesterday that the construction consortium, Consorcio Autopistas del Sol, has not presented the required documentation to begin work.

According  to Vargas, Consorcio will not begin work on the project until the Contaraloría General de la República (Comptrollers office) approves an addendum to the contract.

The addendum is a requirement by the Banco Centroamericano de Intregación Económica y la Cada de Madrid asking that the trust be created by the shares of the Consorcio, that would back their investment of us$200 million dollars in the project.

"The constructor is suspending the start of the work until the Contraloría approves the addendum", said Vargas.

The process could take up to a month for the Contraloría to resolve the issue, meanwhile the machines will not move one inch of the 77 kilometres of the new road that connects Cuidad Colón, west of Santa Ana and San José to Caldera on the Pacific coast.

The new road would reduce the time to travel to Caldera from San José to 30 minutes, a trip that now takes almost two hours.

Alvaro Muelas, general manager of Autopistas de Sol, said last night that the machinery is ready and so are the workers, but it cannot begin to the project until the Contraloría gives the approval for the credit line.

Autopistas del Sol is a joint venture comprised of Spanish, Portuguese and Costa Rican partners.

Once the construction begin, the contract calls for Autopistas del Sol to deliver a complete road within 24 months.

This is the not the first time the project has been stalled.

The project began with a design some 30 years ago. The five bridges that make up the new road were inaugurated in 2002.