SANTO DOMINGO- The Minister of Public Works, Deligne Ascención, highlighted yesterday, Monday, the progress of the work being carried out on the remodeling of Kilometer 9 of the Duarte highway, which he affirmed is in a stage of completion by next August, with the inclusion of 14 lanes to improve vehicular traffic at the entrance and exit of the Capital city.
He stated that around 150,000 vehicles pass through the area daily.
During a supervisory visit to the ongoing work, Ascención said that “there is continuous work that has not stopped here, in one of the areas of the National District with the highest traffic congestion, because we have had to work at different extended hours, to cause the least possible impact on traffic.”.
He stated that the works being carried out there are at quite advanced levels, "entering a stage of completion by the month of August, since we will have about 14 lanes in use on John F. Kennedy Avenue (at its junction with the Duarte Highway), from the eight lanes that this road currently has, it will be taken to 14.".
“The lanes that have been gained will result from using this interchange, which had two bridges at the ends, and in the central area a kind of gap; we are going to complete it by adding lanes in that central span, and thus we will reach 14 lanes,” he said.
He stated that a complete overhaul of the interchanges is underway, and that on the Luperón Avenue section, the structure of the old bridge is being moved "to gain two lanes at both ends. The two end bridges are already finished, the central area bridges already have their piles in place, and work is being done on the abutments and the placement of the beams.".
He also mentioned that Luperón Avenue, which currently has four lanes, will also have six lanes in use by that same date.
Ascención stated that it will take two or three months to complete all the work related to the distributor, including finishing work, gardening, and landscaping, to transform this entire road.
They will also begin working on driving the piles for the last bridge to start the other stages related to the completion of these bridges and thus be able to enable the 14 lanes, which will greatly alleviate traffic on this road.
"Starting in August, the final phase will involve landscaping and the cleanup of the area to deliver to the city of Santo Domingo a completely transformed entrance, both in terms of landscaping and the quality of the road network that serves as the entrance to the National District when traveling from the North region," the official stated.
The aim is to distribute vehicular traffic through different routes, and it will clear up this junction that was concentrated because it was a confluence of vehicles that from Luperón Avenue in both directions arrive at Kennedy Avenue, where it was necessary to take it to 14 lanes at that point where the junction is formed.
Ascención also mentioned that Public Works has been relocating and reaching agreements with those responsible for the bus terminal, as well as with the street vendors scattered around the interchange.
Engineer Alberto Doglioli, from the Malespín Group, said that the investment for these works is approximately 1.2 billion pesos, and that the tracks for the new bridges have already been completed, and the finishing process involves demolishing the central bridges, supporting these tracks, and assembling them by the end of August.
Ascención was accompanied by the contractors responsible for the work, from the firm Malespín.
Intervention on the 27th with Isabel Aguiar
Elsewhere in his tour, Minister Ascención announced that regarding the work to be carried out on Avenida 27 de Febrero with Isabel Aguiar, the collateral improvements and the enabling of the major works will be ready in five months.
“We cannot begin work on the trench at 27 de Febrero with Isabel Aguiar without moving the CAASD pipeline,” he explained.
He stated that the major works there have two stages: one at 27 de Febrero with Isabel Aguiar, which would take 20 or 22 months, and those of the Luperón roundabout with 27 de Febrero, which will take 24 to 28 months, which are the periods of time more or less in which those works will be.
“We are in the area where the work on the Pintura solution and the Ministry of Defense roundabout converge. This is one of the most problematic points in Santo Domingo because of the flow of vehicles, both local and those coming from the South of the country via the 6 de Noviembre highway,” he said.
He stated that additional lanes will be enabled, three to connect from 27 de Febrero to 6 de Noviembre, and three for vehicles coming from 27 de Febrero and joining the extension of that road, improving the connectivity that is currently done by crossing under the bridge.
“In four to five months, these improvements will first allow the development of other works, and then contribute to the fluidity in this same distributor, which was unfinished,” he added.
Ascención stated that in a matter of several months the population will begin to receive the benefits of the investment being made with funds from the agreement the government made with Aeropuertos Dominicanos Siglo XXI (Aerodom), which he said is translating into a direct benefit for the population as a result of that agreement.
The cost of the project exceeds 100 million dollars, involving high-level engineering work carried out by Dominican companies with the hiring of foreign and national specialists who have the capacity to develop projects like this.
“This is the comprehensive solution. What we are doing here is not to see if it works, but rather there was micro-simulation, studies looking at all possible variables and alternatives, both in terms of functionality and costs, and this definitive solution has been chosen,” he added.
