Ecosul concessionaire invests in the recovery of four bridges in the south of the state
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Work will begin in the next few days to adapt access to Praia do Cassino from the duplicated stretch of BR-392, in Rio Grande. The work, which, according to the superintendent director of Ecosul, Fabiano Medeiros, will last up to five months and should relieve traffic on the way to one of the main tourist destinations in the South Region, will be the main one in structural terms in the investment plan of the concessionaire in 2023. In all, Ecosul plans to invest R$ 92.7 million in the Pelotas Highway Pole this year. The largest portion of the funds – R$ 63.5 million – will be spent on maintenance and recovery actions on BRs 392 and 116.
“We will carry out this work that can be viewed by the user and will have a lot of advantage due to the tourist issue involved in the region, but we will mainly have investments this year that are fundamental for the good trafficability of the stretch”, points out Medeiros.
In this respect, the bridge maintenance and recovery works along the concession stand out. Two of them have already started, on the BR-392, over the Camaquã River and over the São Gonçalo Canal. Work is still planned on two bridges on the BR-116, over the Piratini River and the Arroio Grande. There is also a forecast for actions to stabilize a slope area on the banks of the BR-392.
“These are actions that seem commonplace, but they make a structural difference on the highway and often avoid tragedies”, says the director.
In 2022, the concessionaire’s contributions were slightly higher, reaching BRL 93.6 million. It’s just that 150 kilometers of paving were recovered last year, twice as much as planned for this year. 850 signposts were also renewed, while there will be 600 throughout 2023.
This year, Ecosul completes 25 years of concession in the 457.3 kilometer stretch of the Pelotas Highway Hub, which is made up of the BR 116 highway – between Camaquã, Pelotas and Jaguarão, a total of 260.5 kilometers – and BR 392 – stretch of 196, 8 kilometers, which cuts through the cities of Rio Grande, Pelotas and Santana da Boa Vista. The contract expires in 2026.
Even with an increase of 18.7% in gross toll revenue and obtaining R$ 294.8 million (up 21.2%) in adjusted EBITDA in 2022, the Polo Rodoviário de Pelotas reflects, in its income statement of the last year, in numbers one of the consequences of the break in the last soybean crop. There was a 12.1% reduction in the flow of heavy vehicles on the route that takes cargo to the Port of Rio Grande. In 2021, 21.3 million trucks were registered on the stretch, while last year, there were 18.7 million.
“It is worrying data for the state’s economy, but it does not change our investment plans in any way. We have a concession contract and the contributions are part of our commitments in managing the stretch. An eventual reduction in traffic is the business risk” , explains Fabiano Medeiros.
On the other hand, the flow of light vehicles on the same stretch recorded a small increase of 4.6% between 2021 and 2022.
According to the CNT de Rodovias 2022 survey, which analyzed the entire paved network of federal highways and the main state stretches, the Pelotas Road Pole had a positive evaluation. The stretch of BR-116, between Camaquã and Jaguarão, was considered good in all aspects: “general condition”, “pavement”, “signage” and “geometry”. The stretch of BR-392, between Santana da Boa Vista and Rio Grande, was considered good in the item “general condition” and in the “pavement” and fair in the others. According to the survey, of the total network of Rio Grande do Sul (8,700 kilometers evaluated), 66% is considered fair, bad or very bad in relation to the “general condition”, while 34% is considered excellent or good.
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