"Muertos" Cause Of
Traffic Congestion In
Escazú
The speed bumps, known
popularly as "muertos"
or "topes" are the cause
of much of the traffic
congestion on the
Próspero Fernández
highway east of the
Escazú intersection.
Construction crews
installed the speed
bumps over the Tiribí
river bridge that is
under construction,
being expanded from four
to six lanes, as part of
the Caldera highway.
Autopistas de Sol, the
road builder, said the
speed bumps were
necessary to reduce
traffic through the
construction site,
notwithstanding that it
is the cause of
congestion during
morning (7am to 9am) and
afternoon (5pm to 7pm)
rush hours.
The Ministerio de Obras
Públicas y Transportes (MOPT)
and the road builder, in
a joint press statement,
defended the action
saying it is in
prevention of accidents
and for safety of the
workers as the vibration
of the speeding vehicles
over the bridge hampers
work on the bridge
reinforcement and worker
safety.
Karla González, the
ministra de Transportes,
assured that the "muertos"
are a temporary measure
and once the bridge work
is complete, they will
be removed.
The entire area, between
Guachipelin and the
Circunvalación has
become a total nightmare
for drivers, as
construction on the
various bridges along
the stretch of highway,
frequent movement of
heavy machinery and
heavy trucks and volume
of traffic have been the
cause of delays through
the area, even though
work on the bridges is
being carried out only
at night.
To ease congestion, the
MOPT has posted several
Transito (traffic)
officials at the bridge
and the Circunvalación.
However, impatient and
imprudent drivers
without respect to the
signalization in the
area and flagmen around
the construction site,
area a continued major
cause of the problems. |
