Bus service back to normal but is plagued by heavy traffic, construction delays; Covid cases drop to 19 in Cuenca; Deportivo Cuenca stays competitive

Lunes, 16/5/2022

Hola, Todos –

Actividades –

Titular –

Cerrada disputa por ganar primera etapa (Tight race to win first stage) – Deportivo Cuenca tied with Barcelona in Guayaquil yesterday intensifying the fight to win the first phase of the LigaPro. Also in football news, nearby Gualaceo defeated Guayaquil City Monday night, 2-1. Gualaceo is the smallest city represented in LigaPro, Eucador’s “A” football league.  <You’re on your own if you want any more info.>

Cuenca –

ARCSA inspecciona los bares escolares (ARCSA inspects school bars) – <Never knew schools had bars, did you? Those guys passed out in the parks had to start somewhere.> The Agencia Nacional de Regulación, Control y Vigilancia Sanitaria (ARCSA) restarted sanitary inspection of school lunch counters in Azuay, Cañar and Morona Santiago since schools have returned to face-to-face classes. The “bars” need to have permits to operate. Lack of permits can result in a fine of 5 SBU’s (Salarios Básicos Unificados). The inpections check that personnel provide healthy menus <The kids can find junk food everywhere else, including right outside the front door of the schools.>. Inspectors look for 90 parameters including safe food handling techniques, wearing of caps and aprons, and maintaining hygiene.

Cuenca’s municipal bus system is plagued by high demand, heavy traffic and construction delays. (El Mercurio)

Buses hasta con 30 minutos de retraso (Buses delayed up to 30 minutes) – Bus service returned to normal in enero, 2022 to schedules that were in effect before the pandemic. Diego Idrovo, president of the Cámara de Tansporte de Cuenca (CTC), said they are analyzing the routes. There are critical times during rush hours when there are delays with the delay time depending on the bus line. The Cámara’s analysis showed delays up to 34 minutes. For example, line 100 is supposed to take 117 minutes to complete its route, but because of traffic in Milchichig, 9 de Octubre, y Feria Libre, it can take 135 minutes. Line 10 has a 120 min. route which can take up to 154 min. because of heavy traffic in Milchichig, Feria Libre & calle Juan Jaramillo. Construction of the interchange on Las Américas at the Sindicato de Choferes gas station has caused delays in the lines in the north.

Other problem sectors are due to redondels and stoplights at 3 Puentes, Av. 1° de Mayo, Miraflores, and the Sindicato de Choferes gas station. Buses are delayed in the Centro Histórico by road improvement work as well. Idrovo mentioned that both the ciclovía and Tranvía have dedicated lanes in spite of transporting only 6% of the population while the buses carry 75-80%. There is no respect for the bus only lanes in the Centro Histórico. <I bet that could change if the traffic cops started giving tickets to cars in bus lanes. It would probably give a nice, if temporary, boost to the city treasury, too.>

Quick facts: In 4/2019, Line 10 transported 191,000 passengers. This april it transported 143,443. In 2019, the bus system carried 400,000 passengers every day. Currently 320,000 people ride the bus each day. Rush hours when bus frequencies are increased are from 6:30-8:30, 11-14:00, and 17:30-20:00.

Casos COVID descienden an Azuay (COVID cases decrease in Azuay) – COVID cases are continuing to decline in Azuay with only 19 cases in the last report from Andrea Bersosa, the MSP coordinadora for Zone 6. Hospital bed occupancy is under 4% and the situation in Cuenca is controlled with no new admissions. The MSP is still calling for people to complete their vaccinations which can be done at the Centro de Salud closest to their house. Vaccinations are complete at 2 doses with boosters for a 3d and 4th dose. <Time to ditch the local mask requirement. It’s already been informally ditched in a lot of situations. People are voting with their noses.>

Sucesos –

Ingeniero comercial asesinado de un balazo an una gasolinera (Commercial engineer shot to death at a gas station) – Bruno Rivera was a dispatcher at the gas station on Las Américas and the Camino Viejo a Baños. At 2:55 el domingo, a customer walked up to buy gas, and when Rivera turned to find a container, the customer shot him in the back and fled. A friend of Rivera heard the shot, went to look, and saw Rivera on the ground. He called 911. The paramedic team confirmed that Rivera had no vital signs and suspected that he’d had a heart attack. They asked for the police, and when they lifted the body, they found the bullet wound. Rivera was a well respected and had lived in Cuenca for 21 years and worked at the gas station for 15. In 2012 he finished his remote learning university studies with a degree in commercial engineering. His dream was to become the manager of a gas station, and the station’s owner had promised him that position at a station in Naranjal.

Descuentos y compras –

Tía – Días sin IVA el miércoles, 18 y jueves 19/5. No 12% IVA charged on any of their products.

And that’s all for today so hasta ? –

Jeanne