Centenario Bridge Closed Until Further Notice

Seriously damaged by recent mudslides, Panama’s Centenario Bridge will be closed to all vehicular traffic indefinitely.

For the time being, the only road access to the country’s interior is across the Bridge of the Americas.  Cargo truck traffic will be restricted during the heavy traffic morning and evening commute hours.

In related news, the Bridge of the Americas may not be equipped to handle such heavy traffic pending an evaluation scheduled for release in January 2011.

“We are focused on the structure of the bridge because in effect the running boards and the metallic elements that support them are very deteriorated,” Ivan de Ycaza, Vice Minister of the Ministry Public Works, said last April when the Bridge of the Americas was itself closed indefinitely to heavy cargo traffic as a preventative measure.

Damage incurred to Centenario Bridge access slabs