during the forum Guatemala Transformsorganized by the Guatemala Chamber of Commerce (GCC), the president Bernardo Arevalo stated that the main mobility works they must transcend periods of government and proposed the creation of a metropolitan authority to coordinate its execution.
The event brought together several authorities, businessmen and specialistswho analyzed the main infrastructure challenges and country mobility.
During his speech, the president pointed out that traffic problems in the metropolitan area cannot be resolved with measures temporary and explained that the Government’s strategy is based on a study prepared by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), which proposes an integrated network of ring roads, radial axes and intermodal transport.
Among the projects mentioned are the C-50, a ring road to divert the heavy transport from the capital; the road between Heal yourself and Sacatepéquez; he Belize Bridge 2; he second level of Calle Martí; he Metro Rail; several road distributorsand the acquisition of around 300 electric buses to reorganize and integrate the public transport. According to Arevalothese initiatives are in different stages of execution.
The president stated that the country can’t wait several more years to begin the works while they are being developed new plans and proposed creating a Metropolitan Transportation Agency that articulates the municipalities and institutions responsible for planning, run and operate the mobility systemin order to guarantee the continuity of the projects.
Call to give continuity
During the activity, Jorge Brizpresident of the Guatemala Chamber of Commercewarned about the impact that traffic congestion has on the productivity and quality of life of the population.
“Each of us spends 54 days a year of your life in moving from one place to another. And that is very serious because loses quality of lifedevelopment is lost and poverty and misery are not combated,” said Briz.
Likewise, he considered that strategic works must be maintained regardless of government changes.
For his part, Arévalo reiterated that the development of infrastructure requires institutional continuity and assured that the Executive seeks to leave the projects sufficiently advancedboth in their physical execution and in the contractual and financial aspects, to reduce the risk of future administrations suspending them.
Legal certainty to execute works
The president also pointed out that one of the main obstacles to develop projects infrastructure It is the lack of legal certainty.
As he explained, a justice system vulnerable allows works of national interest be detained through legal actions, which is why he insisted on strengthening the institutions to provide greater security to strategic investments.
He added that some works will begin in the coming weeks, while others, such as the Metro Rail and the expansion of Puerto Quetzaladvance in their hiring and design processes.
Arevalo concluded that the mobility transformation requires coordination between Governmentthe municipalitieshe private sector and the citizenshipand indicated that the plan also contemplates new road connectionsprojects railway and the future metropolitan authority of transportation to promote a comprehensive development strategy.
Metropolitan vision
During the same forum, the mayor of Guatemala, Ricardo Quiñónezstated that the growth of the metropolitan region forces us to leave solutions behind isolated and move towards a comprehensive mobility strategy. He pointed out that the capital continues to be the main economic engine of the country by concentrating employment, commerce, services and opportunities, which daily attracts thousands of people from different municipalities.
Quinonez indicated that the mobility challenges They can no longer be resolved from a single municipality or institution, which is why it was considered essential to coordinate efforts between the Governmentthe municipalities and others sectors. He added that projects like the Metro Riel, the C-50, the Belize 2 Bridge, the Central Station and the rest of the announced works are part of the same transportation system and not from independent initiatives.
The mayor maintained that a metropolitan vision will allow each investment complement the others to build a network of modern, integrated and multimodal transport. He added that the Municipality of Guatemala promotes the incorporation of electric busesa monitoring center with artificial intelligence to manage traffic, network modernization traffic lightnew anti-lock bays and permanent programs road education.
Finally, he stated that the objective of the infrastructure It’s not just about building roads., bridges or transportation systemsbut to improve the quality of life of the population by reduce travel times. He added that more efficient mobility will bring opportunitieswill strengthen the economy and will give more time for familiesso he called to maintain a vision long-term for the development of the area metropolitan.