Safer by design: AVO, Chile

12 October 2021

Designs for the Américo Vespucio Oriente I (AVO I) concession in Chile, one of the largest infrastructure projects in Latin America, have been assessed using the iRAP Star Rating methodology prior to commissioning in 2022.

Take a virtual journey through the tunnels, overpasses and multi-lane carriageways beneath and across Santiago to see how engineering safety at the design stage can save lives, money and time.

The concession will move traffic to a free flow underground road network, providing an innovative solution to high traffic saturation, poor flow and north-south connectivity in the city. It will reduce pollution, cut travel times from 40 minutes to 10, increase green space and improve pedestrian and bicycle mobility. To ensure the concession is engineered to provide adequate safety for its users, the Sociedad Concesionaria Vespucio Oriente SA (SCAVO) engaged iRAP to Star Rate 19.3km of proposed designs to assess the level of safety and recommend a Safer Roads Investment Plan with the goal of achieving a minimum 3-star or better safety standard, prior to construction. SCAVO General Manager Luis Eusebio said, “AVO I is one of the most important public infrastructure initiatives underway in the country. Protecting road users is a priority and achieving 3-star or better allows us to have a benchmark against which to measure performance on our concessions in relation to international safety standards.”

Click on the image below to take the AVO virtual journey.