NAVARRETE.-President Luis Abinader, along with the Minister of Public Works, Deligne Ascención, broke ground this Saturday to begin construction work on the Navarrete bypass, an investment that will exceed 4.9 billion pesos.
The president described the construction of the new ring road as crucial, understanding that, while it benefits Navarrete, the greatest impact will be on the provinces of the Northwest Line, considering that drivers will be able to save a considerable amount of time.
He said he committed to building a four-lane bypass all the way to the community of Esperanza. “The truth is, it’s urgent to build the bypass, a four-lane road to the Esperanza intersection, because you know that the population of Valverde Mao is half of the Northwest Line, and between the Esperanza intersection and the Guayacanes intersection, we can say that half of the traffic heads towards the province of Valverde.”.
He emphasized that the Manzanillo dock project will be the development of the entire region, as a logistics, industrial and electricity generation hub.
Ascención said that, in economic terms, the impact of the new bypass has a reach that encompasses all the provinces of the northern region, and that it will reduce travel time for vehicles that must pass through the town of Navarrete during peak hours to go to any of the municipalities of the Northwest, or from these to Santiago, Puerto Plata or the Capital.
He indicated that the project was tendered through an open and transparent process in compliance with Law 340-06, and that it has economic resources provided through the RDVial Trust, thanks to a bond issuance carried out in coordination with the Ministries of Public Works and Finance.
“This road development plan is part of the most extraordinary public investment project that President Abinader’s government has initiated to bring progress to the Northwest region, with the construction of the Manzanillo Multimodal Port, and with the relaunch of tourism in Puerto Plata and along the entire Atlantic coast, with new highways, institutional infrastructure and investment projects in public-private partnerships,” he emphasized.
He explained that the road will be built by contracting two sections north of the town of Navarrete. One of these projects includes widening the Navarrete-Puerto Plata highway to four lanes and renovating a 4.28-kilometer stretch.
Also included are an overpass at the Navarrete roundabout, an interchange at the intersection with the Puerto Plata highway, several underpasses, and two bridges. Each lane will be 3.65 meters wide, with a 2.5-meter buffer zone.
The second section is accessed via a diamond interchange that branches off the La Atravesada-Navarrete highway. The road will include several underpasses in La Mina, Cañada Honda, and La Lomota, three more over rice farming projects, a bridge over the Las Maras stream, and another over the Ulises Francisco Espaillat canal. The entire avenue will have four lanes and the same characteristics as the first section, as described above.
Ascención said that a significant part of the Duarte Highway Modernization and Rehabilitation Project is being carried out with an investment of more than 16 billion pesos along the 165 kilometers, -from Kilometer 9 in Santo Domingo to the Navarrete intersection with the road leading to Puerto Plata-.
He added that along that long stretch, work is underway on a series of specific improvements to ensure the safety of the highway, the expansion to 6 lanes from the 7S to Santiago, and the improvements to Km 9 in the Capital.
“All these projects will support regional productive development and are an essential complement to transforming the Cibao, Northwest, and Atlantic Coast regions by connecting all nearby provinces with modern and comfortable roads, ensuring a higher quality of daily life for Dominicans throughout the country,” he stated.
Senator Eduardo Estrella, from the province of Santiago, stated that the new road will benefit not only Santiago, but the entire Northwest Line, including the port of Manzanillo, and the Cibao region.
Meanwhile, the director of the RDVial Trust, Jean Luis Rodríguez, said that through the efficient and transparent management of the resources that this entity manages from the country's tolls, "today we can be here financing this important project, which had been longed for for many years.".
Rosa Santos, provincial governor of Santiago, assured that the Navarrete bypass, apart from saving time for drivers, will make trade between the provinces of the different regions more active.
The blessing was given by Father Ramón Pacheco, from the Santa Ana parish, while Mrs. Catalina Vargas gave thanks on behalf of the Navarrete community.
Award
The first awarded section was contracted to the Navarrete Ring Road Consortium, made up of the companies Ingeniería Civil Internacional, SRL and Antillean Construction Corporation, SRL, for an amount of RD$2,667,396,380.86.
While the second section corresponds to the Foralba consortium, made up of the contractors J. Fortuna Constructora, and the company A. Alba Sánchez y Asociados, whose contract was signed for an amount of RD$2,264,507,876.69.
The event was attended by officials, legislators and municipal authorities from Santiago, Navarrete, Montecristi, Mao, among others, as well as officials from the MOPC.
