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Thursday, September 13, 2012

Guaynabo Receives $2.1 Million to Begin the Rehabilitation of the Caparra Intersection

Washington, DC—Resident Commissioner Pedro Pierluisi announced today that the Municipality of Guaynabo received $2.1 million of the $10 million awarded by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) to begin the rehabilitation and first phase of construction the Caparra intersection, which will improve traffic on a route that over 200,000 vehicles use daily.

“These funds are for the project’s administrative expenses in the pre-construction phase and for the first of the five phases that are needed to complete the project. Finally we can begin the rehabilitation of one of the most important intersections, improve traffic in highways and main streets of San Juan, make improvements to roads PR-2, PR-23, and PR-165, build new ramps, emergency lanes, converting roundabouts, repaving, improving the traffic light systems to manage traffic, and improve pedestrian pathways so cyclists can benefit as well,” said Pierluisi.

The Caparra intersection consists of several major highways, including PR-20, Martinez Nadal, Kennedy, as well as the Roosevelt and San Patricio avenues. The Resident Commissioner explained that the Caparra intersection was built in the 60’s and has been experiencing an increase in traffic that exceeds the capacity of the system, making it inefficient and insecure.

The allocation Guaynabo received for this project was provided by TIGER (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery) funds. Pierluisi personally mentioned to the U.S. Secretary of Transportation, Ray LaHood, that before these funds were authorized, Puerto Rico, or any other territory had received funding under the TIGER program, in contrast to the 50 states. Pierluisi reminded Secretary LaHood that the law authorizes these funds states that “measures should be taken to ensure that funds are equitably distributed geographically.”

These funds are part of a highly competitive competition and was jointly submitted by the Municipality of Guaynabo, the Puerto Rico Power Authority, the Puerto Rico Department of Transportation and Public Works, Fort Buchanan, and Caparra Intersect Group, and supported by the Resident Commissioner. This application was one of the 848 submitted nation-wide, which together requested a total of $14.29 billion and only had $500 million available. The Guaynabo application was one of 46 award recipients.

Funding for the Caparra intersection is divided in five phases:

TIGER funds Total: $ 10,000,000.00

Funding for pre-construction: $ 200,000.00

Phase 1: $ 1,900,000.00

Phase 2: $ 1,800,000.00

Phase 3: $ 4,200,000.00

Phase 4: $ 1,000,000.00

Phase 5: $ 900,000