ACCIONA to expand and upgrade road linking Panama Canal to Panama City

A consortium headed by ACCIONA has been awarded the contract to widen and upgrade the section of the Pan-American Highway between the Bridge of the Americas and Arraiján, which links the western side of the Panama Canal with the outskirts of Panama City. This is one of the principal road projects being undertaken by the Panamanian government to enhance communications between the country's main cities, and it has a budget of 335 million balboas, approximately 310 million euros.

The project, comprising 10 kilometres of highway and 6 road links, involves expanding the current road, which has two lanes in each direction, is highly congested and follows a sinuous route, into a wider, straighter highway with three lanes in each direction plus two reversible central lanes.

The project is to be executed in 5 years, including design, construction and three years of operation and maintenance.

The goal is to expand Panama City's network of high-capacity roads and its connections with the west side of the Canal to cater for current and future demand. Additionally, once the fourth bridge, currently at the bidding phase, comes into service, this road will improve traffic conditions on both sides of the Canal in the Pacific area.

ACCIONA's bid was rated the best in technical terms, including notably its high quality design and the company's capacity and experience in undertaking highly complex civil engineering projects. Large public works coupled with innovation and sustainability are part of ACCIONA's DNA. With over a century of experience, ACCIONA Construction applies the most advanced environmentally-friendly technologies in all aspects of construction, from engineering through to execution and subsequent maintenance. ACCIONA Construction's first project in Panama was the Dr. Rafael Hernandez Hospital in the David district, which commenced in 2013.