Uruguay Transport Reform Faces Key Decisions on City Center Integration

Uruguay's Ministry of Transport and Public Works is pushing forward with a significant metropolitan transport reform, a key initiative of President Yamandú Orsi. Public focus intensified on the project when a controversial proposal to build a tunnel through the historic 18 de Julio avenue was ultimately rejected in late March. This decision favored an alternative plan for surface-level bus rapid transit (BRT) championed by Intendant Mario Bergara.

With the tunnel discarded, the reform's details have been slow to emerge over the past two months. However, the core of the plan involves establishing two high-frequency BRT lines. One will link El Pinar to Ciudad Vieja via Giannattasio, Avenida Italia, and 18 de Julio. The second will connect Zonamerica to Ciudad Vieja through Camino Maldonado, 8 de Octubre, and 18 de Julio. These BRT buses are designed to carry over 200 passengers, operate in exclusive lanes, and make stops approximately every five blocks.

A major point of contention remains the integration of these BRT lines into Montevideo's Ciudad Vieja. Sources within the capital's intendancy indicate that no final decision has been made. Options under consideration include allowing all BRT buses into the historic district, permitting only some, or restricting BRT access to Plaza Independencia and implementing a separate circuit of smaller buses within Ciudad Vieja.

Further details are still being defined for other aspects of the reform, which envisions a multimodal station at Tres Cruces and five overpasses along 8 de Octubre and Avenida Italia. Minister of Transport and Public Works Lucía Etcheverry recently stated that the ministry is working with multilateral credit agencies to contract a consultancy firm for the project's conceptual design. This preliminary design will outline the major works, prioritize public transport, and redistribute lines across neighborhoods. The goal is to open tenders by the end of the year, with construction slated to begin in 2027.

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It's like a preliminary design. It has the broad outlines of the works that involve preference for public transport and a redistribution of lines to all neighborhoods in each of the departments. It includes critical points, like the case of Tres Cruces (where the station is planned).