1.200 students from 12 schools in the zona norte cannot get to school due to the “pésimo” (poor) state of the roads, including the trocha fronteriza or ruta 1856, La Nacion reports.
According to the publication, the situation worsened Monday morning when a school bus got stuck in the mud some 150 metres from the Medio Queso river bridge, later in the morning three other school buses did the same.
The poor condition of the roads has the communities of Hernández, Medio Queso, San Gerardo, Cuatro Esquinas, Isla Chica, Coquital, Pueblo Nuevo, Santa Fe, Combate, Cachito y las comunidades de La Trocha and La Primavera, isolated.
Gustavo Molina, del Comité de Caminos de Medio Queso, said that the communities were forgotten when work on the trocha project was suspended.
Molina said the road had a good gravel base, but deteriorated with the arrival of construction of the ruta 1856. And the heavy rains of the last week contributed to more deteriation.
The residents of the area are demanding the immediate intervention by the Consejo Nacional de Vialidad (Conavi) – National Roads Authority, as these roads are national and not local.
The Conavi assures that equipment is on the way to repair “most” of the damage roads. Antonio Araya, director regional de la Región Huetar Norte del Conavi, told La Nacion that the Conavi last week awarded a contract worth ¢400 million colones to the Hermanos Brenes for a complete repair of all the roads in the area. The contract, however, still needs to be signed before the work can commence.
