In Panama (Central America)—north of the capital Panama City—the highway between the communities of Nuevo México and El Chungal, suffered from decay for many years. Sensing a significant need. CEMEX completed a study to propose the implementation of cost-efficient technologies that could improve the highway’s condition. As a result, in 2015 the government of Panama, through its Ministry of Public Works, embarked on a project with CEMEX to rehabilitate 5.7 km of the road—the project was completed in June 2016.
This highway is important to locals and to the surrounding regions because it is one of the main access points to the Chagres National Park and the Alajuela Lake, some of the most popular tourist destinations in the country. The current administration hopes this rehabilitation will help further encourage tourism and spur the local economy.
“The realization of this roadway represents a joint effort between the government, the community, and CEMEX,” according to Andrés Jiménez, President CEMEX-Panama. The scope of the project also includes the addition of sidewalks for pedestrians and ditches for channeling rainwater, and is expected to benefit an estimated 15,000 people in the region.
Whitetopping, the combination of CEMEX’s thin concrete pavement solution and concrete overlay technique, allowed for an expansion of the original project proposal from 3.6 km (2.24 mi) to 9.17 km (5.7 mi) of rehabilitation.
CEMEX’s solutions offer increased durability and require less maintenance, expanding the road’s life cycle to approximately 20 years. Other important benefits include increased safety (higher traction and more light reflection), and less heat absorption (reduction in consumption of vehicle gas and energy from surrounding buildings).
At the press event for the inauguration of the project, Juan Carlos Varela, President of the Republic of Panama, stated “This project has no other interest than to respond to the needs of the people of this community and improve their quality of life.”
To view the video: “Nuevo Mexico—Chungal Roadway Advancement in Panama “—Progress on roadway between Nuevo México and El Chungal in Panama” (2:14), please go to the ISCP video upload: https://www.concretepavements.org/2016/08/15/video-cemex-paving-innovations-look-to-improve-quality-of-life-for-15000-people-in-panama/. or the “You Tube” video at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ywsv-z9Q31E.
To read the pre-construction story on the CEMEX webiste, please go go: http://www.cemex.com/MediaCenter/Story/Story20160126.aspx.
Photo: Ready-mix concrete pour during project inauguration.