Q COSTA RICA — After three decades of waiting and five failed attempts, Costa Rica has taken another step toward expanding one of its most important transportation corridors, the route between San José and San Ramón, which is expected to begin in the second half of 2027.
The Consejo Nacional de Vialidad (CONAVI)—National Roadway Council—has published the international tender documents for the project, moving the initiative from the financing stage into the procurement process.
The government of President Laura Fernández is presenting the announcement as a major advance for a road project that has faced years of delays and uncertainty.
The contract will follow a “turnkey” model, meaning the winning bidder will be responsible for the design, construction, equipment and maintenance of the works during the contractual period. The tender is being conducted under the acquisition policies of the Banco Centroamericano de Integración Económica (BCIE)—Central American Bank for Economic Integration.
“With the publication of the request for bids, the San José–San Ramón corridor moves from the approval of financing to the contracting stage for its execution,” the Ministro de Obras Públicas y Transportes (MOPT) and CONAVI board president Efraím Zeledón said, according to La República. “It is a highway the country needs, with greater capacity and safety, and this step brings us closer to that goal.”
A major intervention on Ruta 1
The project covers 55.6 kilometers of Ruta 1, including the General Cañas (La Sabana to the airport) and Bernardo Soto (from the airport to San Ramon) highways. This route carries heavy commuter, commercial, and freight traffic between the capital and the country’s western region.
The plan also includes improvements to 4.45 kilometers of the Río Segundo radial road, part of Ruta 147, the section runs between the bridge over the Virilla River and the Río Segundo interchange.
Taken together, the project would affect nearly 60 kilometers of strategically important road infrastructure. The corridor connects San José with San José International Airport, Alajuela and the northern and western parts of the country, making its capacity and reliability important far beyond daily commuters.
The tender documents are available through CONAVI’s official procurement portal. The government has not yet selected a contractor; the expected construction date depends on the completion of the international bidding process and the signing of the contract.
Financing is in place
The project will be financed through two loan agreements signed by Costa Rica. The first provides up to US$600 million from the BCIE. The second involves €150 million Euros from the OPEC Fund for International Development, estimated at roughly US$170 million under the government’s indicative investment plan, La República reported.
The financing structure gives the government a foundation for moving forward, but securing funding is only one part of delivering the project. The country must still complete the tender, evaluate the bids, award the contract and manage construction on a corridor that cannot simply be taken out of service.
That last point may prove crucial. Expanding the highway while keeping traffic moving between San José, Alajuela and San Ramón will require careful phasing, temporary traffic arrangements and close coordination with businesses, residents and airport users. Even a well-financed road project can generate significant disruption if construction planning is weak.
Analysis: progress, but not yet a finished project
The publication of the tender is meaningful because it turns the highway expansion from a financing commitment into a project that companies can formally bid on. That is a more concrete milestone than announcing plans or approving loans.
Still, the mid-2027 construction target should be understood as a projected start date, not a guarantee that the road will soon be completed.
In Costa Rica, large public works commonly face delays caused by bid challenges, design changes, land or utility issues, environmental requirements, and disagreements over contract terms. A turnkey contract may place many responsibilities with the private contractor, but it does not eliminate the government’s need to supervise the work closely.
The choice of a turnkey structure could offer one advantage: design and construction would be handled within a single contractual framework, potentially reducing the risk that separate design and construction contracts fall out of sync. It also gives the contractor a broader role in coordinating the project. The trade-off is that the public sector must define its requirements clearly and maintain strong oversight of cost, quality, safety and schedule.
The road’s importance is difficult to dispute. The General Cañas highway is one of Costa Rica’s most heavily used routes, and congestion affects workers, freight operators, airport passengers, and businesses throughout the metropolitan area. Additional capacity could reduce travel delays and improve the reliability of the country’s main western access route.
Yet more lanes alone will not solve every transportation problem. If surrounding interchanges, public transit connections, local roads and traffic management systems remain inadequate, congestion could simply shift from one point of the corridor to another. The project’s success will therefore depend not only on the pavement and structures built along the route, but also on how well the expanded highway connects with the rest of the road network.
For now, the government’s immediate challenge is to maintain momentum without sacrificing transparency. Companies now have access to the tender documents, and the next important test will be whether the procurement process attracts strong competition and produces a technically sound, financially credible offer.
After years of stalled attempts to improve the San José–San Ramón corridor, the project has finally reached a stage where construction appears possible. The real measure of progress, though, will come when the contract is awarded, machinery arrives on the road and the promised expansion begins serving the public.