There is great anticipation for the contingency measures announced by the authorities to alleviate the travel of thousands of people to the capital from West Panama, following the temporary closure of the Bridge of the Americas. Transit authorities began a contingency operation at 4:00 a.m. this Tuesday, April 7th, to facilitate entry to Panama City for thousands of people coming from West Panama. From 4:00 a.m. this Tuesday, hundreds of drivers had already started their journey to Panama City, and traffic was already slow at that time. Additionally, in some areas of West Panama, such as Veracruz and Arraiján headquarters, people were lining up to wait for public transportation. Users reported around 6:15 a.m. that public transportation buses were not reaching Arraiján and that some drivers of the so-called alternative transportation were charging up to 5 dollars. Public transportation users recalled that it usually takes them about 2 hours to travel from Arraiján to Panama. The National Police reported that the lane reversal operation began at 4:00 a.m., from the Vista Alegre sector (Arraiján) to the Alta Plaza shopping center, on the Centenario road, which connects with the Ricardo J. Alfaro road. This will be until 9:00 a.m. The internal streets of the districts of Bethania, Bella Vista, Calidonia, and Pueblo Nuevo were full of vehicles, whose drivers were looking for shortcuts to reach their destinations in the capital. Last night, the Panama Canal Authority reported that it enabled the Logistic Corridor between the Brujas road and the Centenario bridge from 4:00 a.m. to facilitate the movement of residents of Veracruz and Panama Pacific. This measure was taken after a fire was recorded under the Bridge of the Americas that left one dead and two injured. The Ministry of Public Works maintains evaluations on the structural safety of the Bridge of the Americas and this Tuesday will conduct technical evaluations with an inter-institutional team to assess if the structure suffered any damage.
