There are two major highway projects under way in Costa Rica, the Caldera Highway extension from San Jose to Orotina near the west coast and the Costanera Highway extension from Quepos to Dominical heading south toward Panama. Both projects have been huge engineering feats requiring hundreds of thousands of cubic yards of stone to build the road bed as well as construction of multiple bridges over the roughly 120 kilometers combined between the two sections. The Costa Rican road network is divided in two systems, the National Network and the Cantonal Network.

The new Caldera toll road from San Jose to Puntarenas is now open from Orotina all the way to Puntarenas and the toll for automobiles is 480 colones (about 85 cents). The missing section between Orotina and Ciudad Colon is expected to be completed by early 2010. The project, funded by the Inter- American Development Bank, is nearing completion. This highway required the construction of 5 new major bridges to cross some very steep valleys as well as rivers and other water bodies in the mountains west of San Jose. The project has been slowed as safeguards to run off into local aquifers are being installed in this environmentally conscious country. Road work can be challenging since Costa Rica is home to four mountain ranges, with peaks over 11,000 feet.

On the southern coastal highway known as the Costanera extension between Quepos and Dominica the final finish coat of pavement is now being installed. At this point less than 3 miles remains unpaved and most of this section is nearly ready for paving. The drive time has been reduced from several hours to less than an hour. There is a big increase in tractor trailer traffic along the coastal route since the Costanera is a better alternative than the Inter-American Highway stretch known as the Cerro De La Muerte (passage of death) via the inland route by San Isidro En General. Truck traffic will increase along the coastal route as more drivers realize they avoid the climb to nearly 11,000 feet above sea level required on the Cerro and also avoid having to pass through San Jose on their trip north.

Bridge Update: All the major bridges from Jaco to Dominical are now complete and open. Just two years ago all traffic had to drive through the two rivers via this route, sometimes impossible during the rainy season. The new bridge in Parrita is finally open so you no longer have to wait at the one lane antiquated bridge to cross the river where weekend traffic to Quepos and Manuel Antonio would often back up for hours. The bridge across the Sevegre River has now been fully widened to two lanes and the bridge across the Naranjo River just south of Quepos is finished as well. The only bridge left to be completed is the one lane bridge by the town of Hatillo, which was only installed a few years ago and is close to Dominical. This is welcome news for the southern region since an antiquated hammock bridge recently collapsed just north of here on the Tarcoles River. posted by Steve Linder of Pacific Lots of Costa Rica, http://www.PacificLots.com