President of Chile Gabriel Boric Font at the inauguration of the Américo Vespucio Oriente I Highway: “These works will provide a better quality of life”

750,000 people will benefit from this project as it will shorten travel time, and the aim of its landscaping design is to care for and conserve the green areas of the Vespucio Park.

The President of Chile, Gabriel Boric Font, led the inaugural ceremony for the new Américo Vespucio Oriente Highway, El Salto-Príncipe de Gales Section (AVO I) this morning. He was accompanied by Public Works Minister Juan Carlos García, Treasury Minister Mario Marcel, and Housing and Urban Development Minister Carlos Montes.

The highway will provide the northeastern part of the city with a 9-kilometer route covering the municipalities of Recoleta, Huechuraba, Vitacura, Las Condes and La Reina. Approximately 750,000 people will benefit from the project, which is the longest viaduct on an urban highway designed with high-standard engineering.

"These works will provide a better quality of life, a good life to families, and not just those who live in the areas where the highway passes through - that is Huechuraba, Recoleta, Vitacura, La Reina and Las Condes. This highway is for those who have to travel from the southern part of the city to go to work in the eastern part," said the President during his speech.

The AVO I Highway will relieve congestion in a highly saturated part of the city, reducing commuting times between El Salto and Príncipe de Gales Ave from 40 minutes to 10 minutes during rush hour. It will free up at least one hour of traveling time that those who use the highway can, for instance, choose to spend with their family.

President Boric stated that "it is impressive how those who live in major cities, in this case in Santiago, have had to get used to these long- distance commutes that affect their lives tremendously. And, therefore, everything that the State can do, in conjunction with private companies, to improve quality of life; because this is not about building concrete but about improving the time that parents spend with their children."

Finally, the President welcomed the fact that projects such as this one transcend a government administration. "To carry out a project such as this one requires serious companies and a serious State, and a continuity of State policies. This idea should have started almost 20 years ago," he stated.

After this inauguration, the Public Works Ministry will initiate 45 projects on the Vespucio Sur Highway, corresponding to 98 environmental commitments, including improvements to the surroundings of walkways, acoustic shields and road safety.