Fabian Debesa
11/14/2020 18:37
Clarín.com
Society
Updated 11/14/2020 6:57 PM
The progressive openings of various economic activities and the permits for non-residents to return to their summer homes allowed the slow return of private traffic to the routes of the province.
Highway 2 and the road network to the beaches of the Coast are beginning to be displayed again in the drivers' GPS.
But the main road to link the metropolitan area with the Buenos Aires beaches was
eight months without works
and the first travelers ran into potholes, deteriorated pavement, lighting deficiencies, blurred demarcation in extensive stretches and huge grasslands on the shoulders.
The 846 kilometers of the Atlantic Road Corridor, which include routes 2, 11, 56, 63 and 74, were also affected by the quarantine.
Unable to collect tolls, state concessionaire AUBASA
suspended repair and maintenance tasks
.
“Provincial resources had to be derived from the health emergency.
Without income and without the possibility of resorting to state funds, it was impossible to dump money for the repairs, "acknowledged sources from the provincial government.
The company that manages the service put the savings from its bank accounts to face the payment of salaries of the more than 1,700 employees during the coronavirus pandemic.
Tall grasslands on the side of the route.
According to specialists, they make visibility difficult.
The coastal corridor and the La Plata-Buenos Aires highway (both under concession by AUBASA) had the collection of rates suspended from March 20 to May 13.
In addition, the fall in traffic in the months of strict quarantine
reached rates of 87%
.
A sample data: on a Friday in April 2020, 4,560 cars passed.
A year earlier, the record had reached 33,358.
At the end of October, with the booths enabled for payment, 13,500 cars passed against 26,800, which crossed the barriers 12 months earlier.
The values of the service are frozen: to travel from downtown Buenos Aires to the shore of the ocean you have to pay 324 pesos to go by car.
There are 84 (in rush hour) from the Buenos Aires-La Plata highway, and two 120 tickets in Samborombón and Maipú.
The price had the last variation, of 33%, in April 2019 and the Government ensures that
no further adjustments are planned
.
The concessionaire AUBASA admitted that maintenance tasks were suspended.
On November 1, Axel Kicillof signed in for homeowners who do not live in coastal cities.
And in two weeks the 2020/2021 season will begin which, according to the protocols established by the Government, will run until mid-April, after Easter.
From that day on, the "internal exodus" will begin, with Route 2 as the central road column.
In December 2019, 722,700 vehicles crossed this 400-kilometer double track.
And in the "peak" months of the season the number of cars crossing the toll booths
is above 1.1 million
.
Motorists will need to sharpen their driving skills because the trail presents
some risky obstacles
.
From kilometer 150 (in the jurisdiction of Lezama), the pastures on the side of the asphalt overlook the landscape of the Buenos Aires plain.
"The presence of weeds on shoulders
obstructs the view of the signs
and adds to the risk of a possible descent of the vehicle,"
a road safety specialist
described to
Clarín
.
“In some sections, the weeds cover the milestone markers.
And in others they barely show the posters, "he added.
The state of deterioration of highway 2, after a year without works.
As this newspaper was able to verify, these irregularities are
notorious
at kilometers 190 (Dolores);
301 (The Arms);
354 (Coronel Vidal) and 367 (Vivoratá).
At other points along the way, the grass is less abundant.
And in the area of the countries that are between kilometers 60 and 75 (La Plata), the developers are in charge of keeping the plots neat to one side of the highway.
Patches, bumps and bumps on the asphalt tape are replicated for most of the ride.
"The subsidence of the pavement caused by the traffic of trucks is an element of risk, especially on rainy days," they said at the Center for Experimentation and Road Safety (CESVI).
The signs of heavy traffic can be seen at the toll exits (Samborombón and Maipú) and at the access to Dolores and Chascomús, among other places.
From kilometer 70, near Etcheverry, the hand for use of "heavy", is "almost impassable", posted a truck driver a week ago in their networks.
The
deepening on the lanes
cause the loss of stability of the buses.
Between November 2019 and February 2020 there were
two passenger bus rollovers with four deaths
.
Destroyed.
This is the asphalt on some sections of the highway.
These problems would fall into the category of "solvable" in the short term.
Simple to fix.
In the area of institutional relations of AUBASA they said that "shortly" will be known the work diagram to repair and condition the trail that will enter the high season in about 20 days.
And that there are a series of actions to prepare the way, although they did not describe what they would be.
But structural problems persist in the corridor.
The route map that six million cars travel each summer to bring tourism to the Atlantic of Buenos Aires,
lacks the double track
in several sections.
There are 83 kilometers of route 11 that go from the junction with the 36 (near Pipinas, Punta Indio) to the corner of Crotto;
50 kilometers on the General Conesa-San Clemente section;
70 kilometers between Villa Gesell and Mar Chiquita;
and almost 90 kilometers from San Clemente to Pinamar, a section that
connects all the beaches of the Partido de la Costa
.
There are 290 kilometers where you travel back and forth over
just eight meters wide
.
It is in these sectors where accidents and crashes are concentrated, most of them frontal.
Three years ago, María Eugenia Vidal's management had committed to completing 158 double-lane kilometers with a plan that would be developed by the Buenos Aires Highway Administration.
The works began, but were suspended "after the 2019 STEP elections," according to sources from the Buenos Aires Ministry of Infrastructure and Public Services.
Signs and kilometer markers, completely covered by grass.
The circuit has another route of a single lane by hand of 62 kilometers in the General Conesa-Madariaga section of Route 56. It is
a high-risk road
due to intense traffic: it is an obligatory step for those heading to Pinamar or Gesell from the metropolitan area.
The program that remained unfinished envisaged an investment of 4.8 billion pesos.
Only the double track (with roundabouts, entrances and lighting) between San Clemente and Santa Teresita was completed.
The tasks in the 56,
called "route of the death"
, were resumed in September of this year.
"There is a political decision to launch these fundamental works for both tourism and users," said the Undersecretary of Public Works, Ernesto Selzer.
The official explained that there was
a debt of one billion pesos
with contractors and another 5 billion will be necessary for completion.
Based on an agreement between the governor and the president, Alberto Fernández, funds were transferred to advance.
In Public Works of the Province they explained that in December the works will not be suspended, although they will avoid causing traffic disturbances.
Despite the stoppage due to the pandemic, this summer
there will be a premiere in a section of the road network
.
Repaving works and comprehensive improvements on provincial highway No. 11 - which connects Mar del Plata with Chapadmalal - ended last week.
They are works arranged by the Roads of the Province of Buenos Aires, between the Mar del Plata Lighthouse and the presidential complex neighboring that city.
It is more than 14 kilometers where there was resurfacing of the road and shoulders, maintenance and enhancement of bridges, repair and conservation of culverts and the construction of a pedestrian bridge.
Pedestrian shelters, vehicle defenses were also placed and the projected horizontal and vertical signage was executed,
an old demand
from users who travel between "La Feliz" and Miramar.
La Plata. Correspondent
ACE
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