The Getulio Vargas – Agustín Pedro Justo International Bridge, which connects Brazil to Argentina, on the BR-290, in Uruguaiana on the western border, has been partially blocked since Friday night (16). According to the Federal Highway Police (PRF), vehicles are using the “stop and go” system, due to structural problems on the bridge, in the Brazilian sense, less than 50 meters from the total crossing. Cargo vehicle traffic was prohibited this Saturday morning (18).
The coordinator of the Paso de Los Libres Border Center of Argentina, Alberto Yardin, distributed a statement on the situation of the bridge.
“Due to having verified the existing deterioration in a stretch of the Getulio Vargas International Bridge on the Brazilian side and prioritizing the safety and physical integrity of people, today, the circulation of international cargo vehicles will be interrupted, until the damages are evaluated by the authorities of the Federative Republic of Brazil”. The international bridge was authorized only for the transit of private vehicles.
The note also says that “passenger cars are requested to travel with caution, especially fifty meters before reaching the head of the bridge on the Brazilian side, a place where only one hand will be enabled”.
In a statement, the National Department of Terrestrial Infrastructure (Dnit) reported that, after the first inspection carried out this Saturday (17), the municipality detected the need to reinforce the beams, at km 750 of the BR-290/RS, in Uruguayan. “The expectation is that the shoring service will be carried out during the weekend”, says the note.
With the shoring, it will also be possible to release the passage of heavy vehicles on the crossing in the Stop and Go system, as has been the case with light vehicles since Friday night (16).
The bridge was inaugurated in 1947 and, due to the intense traffic of trucks and cars, it has been causing inconvenience to the safety of drivers and setbacks in the international transport of cargo.
Updated article with information from Dnit at 16:36.
