Korean consultants present three proposals for a new Cuenca-to-Guayaquil highway
The proposed routes of a new highway between Cuenca and Guayaquil.
International transportation consultants Korea Expressway Corporation have presented three proposals for a new six-lane highway connecting Cuenca and Guayaquil. Ecuador’s Transportation Ministry, as well as officials from Cuenca and Azuay Province say they are reviewing the plans which must also undergo technical, environmental, social, economic and analysis.
The current two-lane route between the cities, has for years been plagued with landslides and an unstable roadbed conditions. The Cuenca’s mayor’s office claims the cost of frequent traffic stoppages for Cuenca and Azuay Province amounts to more than $300 million a year.
The shortest of the three proposed routes may be the most expensive, according to the Korean consultants. The route follows the current highway but includes an 18-kilometer tunnel through a section of the Cajas Mountains. The 123-kilometer route would have an estimated one-hour-and-45-minute drive-time from Cuenca to Guayaquil.
The second proposal routes the highway from Cuenca through Azogues, Biblián, Cañar, and El Triunfo to Guayaquil and covers 153 kilometers.
The third proposal, developed in conjunction with the University of Cuenca, takes the route further north, through Azogues, Biblián, Cañar, Zhud and El Triunfo to Guayaquil, covering 161 kilometers.
The second and third proposals would tie into an upgraded Cuenca-to-Azogues autopista.
According to the Transportation Ministry, the Korean Expressway consultants continue to conduct evaluations of the three proposals. “The Cuenca-Guayaquil highway project is progressing according to schedule,” the ministry says. “We hope to have the final plan completed in the last quarter of the year. This is a decisive step toward building a modern, safe, and efficient highway connecting two of the country’s main cities.”
The ministry adds that the new highway will be a public-private partnership.
