Tram construction crews are returning to Cuenca’s historic district but the city says work will be completed within weeks this time. “Businesses along the train route on Calles Mariscal Lamar and Gran Colombia will not see the protracted delays of 2015 and 2016 when streets and sidewalks were torn up for months,” says city spokesman Jaime Guzmán.
The tram work in El Centro is mostly “repair and clean-up” of previous construction.
According to Guzmán, the work in El Centro is mostly “repair and clean-up” of previous construction. “The crews will finish work on the station platforms and repair areas along the track where inferior products were used by the previous project contractor,” he says. “We are talking about cracks in the concrete, missing manhole covers and unfilled spaces along the track. Some rerouting of utilities is also required,” he said.
A total of 40 intersections near and crossing Gran Colombia and Lamar will be temporarily closed during the work, but most closures will last no longer than three days. “We will do our best to avoid congestion but there will some,” Guzmán said. “We are providing schedule information to businesses along the route and assuring them that work will be accomplished quickly and efficiently.”
He added that construction will proceed by sector and not involve the entire work area simultaneously.
All work in the historic district will be completed by early July, Guzmán says. “By July 27, the work through the district, all the way to the bus station on Av. España, will be finished and live tests will begin.”
