The implementation of the third lane has improved the smoothness of traffic and reduced the number of traffic accidents – Photo: Arteris Litoral Sul/Disclosure

Over a period of one year and three months, since the third lane was introduced about 16 km on the southern lane of BR-101 in Santa Catarina, between Palosa and San José, in December 2021, until August 2022 The number of accidents recorded by Arteris Litoral Sul, the concessionaire responsible for the work on the Greater Florianopolis road circuit, decreased by 40%.

As for side collisions, this reduction reaches 53%. Peelings, which are common in this area, mainly before work on the third lane, were almost halved, by 42%, according to the company. The number of fatalities in accidents at the same site also fell to 30% over the same time interval.

“In both the north and south directions, we turned the shoulder into a third lane, which improved the distribution of traffic. Previously, crossing times were very intense and the flow was clogged. There is now a significant decrease in the number of accidents and deaths, as well as a significant reduction in queues, as a traffic accident further increases traffic congestion,” emphasizes José Junior, Operations Manager of Arteris Litoral Sul.

He recalls that before the completion of services, these points on BR-101 were at the top of the ranking of the most critical sections with the highest number of accidents among national roads. After expanding the capacity of the roads in the region, with the third lane, none of them returned to the top positions in this list – this is a favorable scenario, ”underlines Junior.

Work completed in 12 months

Since the introduction of the third lane about 16 km on the southern lane of BR-101 in Santa Catarina, between Palos and San José, the number of accidents reported by Arteris Litoral Sul has decreased by 40% – Photo: Arteris Litoral Sul/ Information disclosure

In 2015, Arteris Litoral Sul converted the entire shoulder of the southern section of BR-101, also between Palosa and San José, to a third lane, allowing drivers to have three lanes for traffic in both directions. In the north, the work was completed by the concessionaire on December 17, 2021. The work lasted ten months – with an investment of 53.2 million reais – to widen the motorway in a section of 15.6 km, starting from km 216. up to 200.4 km. In total, about 200 workers worked over the course of one year to paving, signage, install security fences, and repair 23 entrances and exits between the highway and the coastal road. The handlebars have been designed to provide safe acceleration and deceleration maneuvers.

Another important point is the reconstruction of the intersection between BR-101/SC and Via Expressa. Access has been expanded – with the introduction of a fourth lane providing greater fluidity and safety on this critical link to the state capital.

The implementation of the new third lane also required the repair and expansion of two bridges in this section. The bridges over the Maruim and Passa Vinte rivers were originally built over 50 years ago and did not have a compatible width for three lanes. As a result, they were completely rebuilt and expanded to accommodate the new flow configuration in the region.

Assessment of municipalities

Another benefit of the works, including the Contorno Viário da Grande Florianópolis, is the assessment of the communities included in the site covered by the work, both with the third lane and with the completion of the entire project. With the third lane, for example, heavy vehicles began to move in the corridor designated for them and accelerate their pace. Similarly, passenger cars are also able to move faster in their lanes, which has greatly improved the mobility of the entire region.

“When Contorno is ready, we will remove heavy vehicles from the route of the residents of these municipalities and, at the same time, drivers will gain maneuverability with the third lane. So those who were not interested in living in these places due to traffic and constant queues will start looking for accommodation there, because the travel time will be much shorter, safer and much smoother, ”adds Junior. “Society has already received very important benefits from this capacity expansion, which is also the goal of the highway concession, to provide regional development, security, infrastructure, mobility and many other benefits. We perceive municipalities and populations seeing these opportunities.”

According to research by Arteris Litoral Sul, during the transition, the average speed increased by 20 kilometers per hour. “Imagine the benefit for those who live in the region, if earlier the driver left, drove home or got to work in an hour, today she can make this journey, for example, in 30 minutes. This improves the quality of life of a person who begins to see the opportunity to do other things, spend more time with friends, family and exercise,” says the operating manager of the concessionaire.

When everything is ready, Contorno Viário will relieve traffic on the main section of the BR-101, which leads to the capital. Once delivered, it will be possible to cross the Contorno in approximately 38 minutes, giving drivers an average travel time gain of 1 hour 22 minutes at peak times.

Dedicated track for motorcycles

Reducing the number and severity of accidents contributes to public health by freeing up hospital beds that would otherwise be occupied by accident victims – Credit: Arteris Litoral Sul/Disclosure

Another action being explored by Arteris Litoral Sul is the creation of a highway corridor, an exclusive blue lane for motorcyclists, like other facilities already installed in the country, such as the one currently in operation in São Paulo, on Avenida 23 de Mayo. . The intention is to reduce the number and severity of accidents, as well as reduce the number of hospital beds occupied by these drivers.

“With this exclusive lane, a motorcyclist, if he gets into an accident, will have a passenger car next to him, not a heavy one, which reduces the severity of this accident. Motorcyclists can be much more seriously injured in road traffic accidents than, for example, car drivers, who have more protection provided by the vehicle and can therefore spend long periods of time in a hospital bed. Therefore, the purpose of this action is also to contribute to the improvement of public health in Greater Florianopolis,” says Arteris Operations Manager.

What will be the total area of ​​the highway along which the blue corridor will pass, the concessionaire still determines. “Now we are evaluating impacts, points, locations, studying the entire project.”

Place to recharge

Arteris is also building the first PPD (stop and rest point) for truck drivers on a managed site, on the route between the capitals of Curitiba and Florianopolis. The investment is 15 million reais and the work is expected to last 12 months.

The facility was built by the concessionaire at km 220 of the BR-101/SC motorway, in Palhocha, in the area of ​​the old toll plaza, which was deactivated on site. A total of 39,000 m2 will be built with a focus on the main building.

The building is located on the south bank of the highway and will have two floors with a storage room, a recreation room, toilets, shower rooms and changing rooms. In addition, there will be places for the installation of automated convenience stores, an automated laundry, a pharmacy and the sale of essential goods for truckers.

On the north side there will also be a building with bathrooms, including men’s and women’s toilets, equipped in accordance with accessibility standards. The northern building is combined with the main building by crossing the highway.

PPD parking will be designed for 59 spaces, of which 33 spaces are for trailers up to 30 meters long and 26 more spaces for trucks up to 12 meters long. Parking spaces will be allocated in both directions from BR-101/SC.

“PPD will be a big achievement for truck drivers who don’t have one today in southern Brazil. This is an important delivery for a trucker, for a professional who does not have this support on the roads and is forced to stop, for example, at gas stations. There will be a place where he can really relax and recharge his batteries. The goal of PPD is to make the driver more rested and safer on the road,” explains José Junior.

Arteris Litoral Sul is also making changes to bases of operations on BR-101 and establishing an operational support base at km 203. “We are going to make our resources more centralized, closer to the points that really generate more demand for us. to serve users. This support base leaves 220 km and heads for 205 km. In addition, we are expanding user service to 243 km in Palhocha, where before it was just an operating base, it will be user service.”