Costa Rica’s transport ministry is preparing to launch seven major road and rail projects in the coming months, and it is already warning drivers that several will advance at once — a convergence that could snarl traffic across the Greater Metropolitan Area and key routes to the airports and the coasts.
Public Works and Transport Minister Efraím Zeledón said the tender for the San José–San Ramón corridor expansion is due to be published this month. The $770 million project will be split into two contracts awarded to different firms, mirroring the approach used on the Barranca–Limonal stretch. In September, the ministry expects to publish the tender for widening the San José–Cartago highway (Florencio del Castillo), a roughly $600 million project that, although presented as a private initiative by the firm MECO, must go to an international bid.
The metropolitan electric train adds another front. The rail agency, Incofer, expects to tender the “Tibi” train in the first quarter, with the first line running San José–Heredia–Alajuela and construction starting in 2028; officials have not ruled out suspending existing service during some phases. Together, the San José–San Ramón, San José–Cartago and train projects represent more than $2 billion in investment and would affect over 180,000 users, according to MOPT and Incofer figures reported by La Nación.
For 2027, the ministry projects the start of works on Route 21 in Guanacaste and on San José–San Ramón, plus four Route 32 interchanges that would replace the criticized roundabouts at Jiménez de Pococí and Siquirres, and later at Barbilla and Matina.
To limit the disruption, the government is weighing what Zeledón called “urgent and exceptional” measures, including decreeing telework and staggered schedules for public employees. Contractors will be required to submit traffic-management plans that both mitigate impacts and speed up the work. Drivers should also brace for a fresh bottleneck in August near the Hatillos overpass on Circunvalación, where the bridge over the María Aguilar River is due for a full replacement.
The projects touch some of the most-used corridors — the routes to San Jose’s Juan Santamaría International Airport, to Cartago, to Guanacaste’s Liberia International Airport via Route 21, and to the Northern Zone — meaning commuters, freight operators and tourists making airport transfers or coastal drives are all likely to feel the effects.
