Mountain Infrastructure
La Cuesta de las Chilcas (Route 5 North)
This project is regarded as one of the company’s greatest achievements in road engineering in the country due to the extreme difficulty of the terrain. A mountainous section of Chile’s main arterial road featured sharp bends, very steep gradients (of up to 11 per cent) and a high accident rate. FCC carried out the widening to three lanes in each direction, the stabilisation of massive slopes using mesh and anchor bolts, and the construction of a 411-metre-long curved viaduct at a great height.
The maximum gradient was reduced to 7 per cent, drastically improving road safety and the flow of heavy goods traffic connecting Santiago with the north of the country, whilst keeping the road open to traffic throughout the works.
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Urban Motorways and Metropolitan Access Roads
FCC has demonstrated a strong ability to manage road works in congested urban environments, where planning and traffic diversion are critical:
Northern Access to Santiago (Santiago–Lampa Concession)
Refurbishment and widening of a section of Route 5 North to transform it into a standard urban motorway. This included the construction of expressways, local service roads (collector roads), pedestrian footbridges, grade-separated junctions and the implementation of electronic toll systems (Tag).
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Access roads to the city of Iquique (Route 16 and Route 1)
Works to widen carriageways and improve connectivity in the north of the country. The project included the stabilisation of complex desert soils, and the construction of grade-separated junctions and roundabouts to safely connect the port and industrial area with the rest of the Chilean road network.
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Lo Marcoleta Road Corridor (Quilicura)
A key urban connectivity project in the Santiago Metropolitan Region, involving the opening, resurfacing and geometric improvement of major avenues to ease traffic congestion in one of the capital’s most dynamic industrial districts.
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Regional Connectivity and Road Bridge Engineering
Experience in road construction in Chile is also closely linked to overcoming geographical and water-related obstacles:
Concepción Industrial Bridge (Biobío River)
Although it is a transport structure, it effectively operates as a 6.4-kilometre closed-toll motorway. The road section includes elevated links, embankments and road infrastructure meeting high seismic standards, specifically designed to divert heavy goods vehicle traffic away from urban centres and connect it directly to the ports of the Biobío Region.
Upgrading of Route T-775 (Puerto Nuevo – Quillaico)
A project in southern Chile (Los Ríos Region) focused on resurfacing, straightening bends and constructing river defences to ensure year-round road connectivity in rural areas exposed to severe weather conditions.