Governor announces highway initiatives

Gov. Pedro R. Pierluisi and the director of the Highways and Transportation Authority, Edwin González Montalvo, announced various agency projects to revitalize, repair, and maintain local road infrastructure.

By The Star Staff

Gov. Pedro R. Pierluisi and the director of the Highways and Transportation Authority (ACT), Edwin González Montalvo, announced Tuesday various agency initiatives, including the expansion of the Insurance Program, the delivery of a vehicle fleet for the construction and maintenance of highways, the signing of an Agreement with the federal government and the publication of an interactive map that contains the status of the works carried out throughout the Island.

“Our roads and road transportation infrastructure play a vital role in the daily lives of our Puerto Rican sisters and brothers. During this four-year period, we have carried out an impressive range of projects to revitalize, repair, and maintain our road infrastructure, which has allowed us to improve the safety of public roads and provide a better quality of life to their users,” said Pierluisi.

The first governor added that “an important initiative of the Department of Transportation and Public Works and the ACT on our roads is the Insurance Program, which we have been expanding over the past three years, and which offers assistance service on the roads to guarantee the safety of drivers and first responders in handling traffic incidents and emergencies. Today I announce that we will once again be expanding the Insurance Program in the PR-2 service from Ponce to Mayagüez.”

Apart from expanding the program’s reach to Mayagüez, the service hours will also be extended from 9:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. Monday through Friday and from 8:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. on weekends on all sections of the aforementioned roads, except PR-30.

Right now, it is active for free on Luis Muñoz Marín, PR-1, John F. Kennedy, PR-2, Las Américas, PR-18, Román Baldorioty de Castro, PR-26 expresses, and on the Cruz Ortiz express Stela, PR-30.

For his part, the executive director of the ACT pointed out that “every day, we work to provide better service to drivers and guarantee their road safety. In addition, we look for ways to innovate and develop programs that efficiently serve all citizens who travel our roads.”

Through the Insurance Program, more than 34,000 incidents, including vehicle crashes, vehicles with mechanical defects, and debris collections, were attended to on the roads last year.

The secretary of the DTOP, Eileen Vélez Vega, added that “since I began directing the DTOP, I focused on identifying and addressing the needs and improving the resources that various core areas of the department had. This free service is a proactive effort to assist drivers in emergencies. Now, people traveling along the PR-2 highway from Ponce to Mayagüez will be able to feel safer. This is part of our commitment and responsibility to citizens.”

On the other hand, after investing more than $1 million of ACT’s own funds, the governor and the executive director delivered a fleet of vehicles that includes 12 Dodge Ram brand pick-up trucks, two flatbed trucks, four 18-ton trucks to load asphalt and haul equipment, and two vehicles with directional arrows and lighting.

The executive director of the ACT noted that “rebuilding roads and ensuring road safety is a priority for our government. This is why we are delivering these vehicles today. They will be assigned to personnel dedicated to maintaining and constructing roads and highways throughout the island. This equipment strengthens the Highway Authority’s fleet and is of vital importance to continue carrying out the work that is carried out on our roads for the benefit of our drivers.”

Thirdly, Pierluisi participated in the signing of a new Delegation and Oversight Agreement between the ACT and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), which allows the state agency greater authority to carry out the responsibilities for highway improvement projects that were previously managed by the Federal Administration.

“This Agreement updates a memorandum of understanding that was signed in 2016, under which strict federal monitoring was still maintained. With the new Agreement, greater actions are delegated to the ACT, establishing the roles and responsibilities that the Highway Authority and the federal government will now have,” added the first executive.

Finally, the ACT said it has an interactive map available on its website that includes updated information on the highway projects carried out by the agency throughout the Island.