With just under a year to go until the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics and Paralympic Games opens, the first train for the city’s new Light Rail network has arrived for testing, as part of Brazil’s investment in public infrastructure ahead of the XXXI Olympiad. The first of 32 Citadis trams, built by Alstom arrived in Rio from its rail rolling stock plant in La Rochelle, France, although 27 of them will be built in a new facility in Sao Paulo in Brazil.
Governor of Rio de Janeiro Luiz Fernando Pezão has confirmed that proposals to develop a bus rapid transit have been rejected, as increasing public demand means the construction of metro line 3 is the only viable long-term solution given the city’s growing population. Studies are expected to be complete by next year, with construction set to begin late-2017 or early 2018.
Twelve of Metro Rio’s fifteen new trains, which will operate Line 4, have arrived this week from China and operational testing will begin this week on Line 1 and Line 2. The trains will have six cars and will be able to transport 1,800 passengers. The remaining Line 4 trains are expected to arrive in December 2015. The new line will run from Barra to Ipanema in thirteen minutes and Barra to Centro in 34 minutes.
The government of São Paulo has agreed to pay an additional R$20 million to the Isolux Corsan Corivam consortium to complete two of the remaining four stations of the cities line 4 project. Works have so far taken 11 years, and the government recently threatened to break the terms of the contract, following extensive delays on the project expected to be complete in 2010.
The BNDES (Brazilian National Development Bank) has affirmed in a recent study that Brazil requires a further investment of R$234 billion, 4.8 percent of GDP within the next twelve years to overcome the cities urban transportation and infrastructure shortfalls. The BNDES announced in April they have allocated approximately R$60 billion (US$19.4 billion) to forthcoming projects, representing 40% of the national banks funds for 2015.
China and Brazil have continued to discuss details of new projects, following Prime Minister Li Keqiang visit, which culminated in the announcement of US$53.3 billion of investment towards a new train factory, shipyard and technical training school in the South American country. “The partnerships as a result of the visit of Chinese Prime Minister, put Rio as a gateway for Chinese investment in Brazil”, the Rio governor explained.
China construirá el ferrocarril transoceánico que unirá Brasil y Perú, Atlántico y pacífico con una longitud de unos 4.700 kilómetros que dará acceso, además, a grandes zonas productora e materias primas y alimentos. Los primeros estudios de la línea, entre ellos los de viabilidad y financieros, ya se han iniciado y se prevé que sus conclusiones puedan estará listas en un año, en mayo de 2016.
President Dilma Rousseff and Rio governor Luiz Fernando Pezão visited works, as Metro Rio confirm the Line 4 metro project connecting the south of the city with Tijuca is now progressing on schedule for a June 2016 completion. Transportation Secretary Osorio, noted that once completed Line 4 will carry over 300,000 passengers per day.
The first of fifteen Chinese trains that will operate Metro Rio’s Line 4, connecting the Olympic Village to the Copacabana Game Center, has arrived in the city and is expected to be operational by the start of April 2015. Line 4 will run 16 miles and is projected to carry 300,000 passengers per day.
Varios proyectos de infraestructura, como lo es la ciclovía en la Avenida Niemeyer, se ajustan a los nuevos planes para una nueva línea de metro en la Zona Sur, hasta el inicio de la construcción de una cuarta línea de BRT, tomaron mucha importancia en las últimas dos semanas, todos ellos diseñados para mejorar el movimiento y agilidad para el tráfico en Río.
