A speed bump hastily built Monday, August 30 at the northern outskirts of Chapala was demolished the following day in the wake of a series of minor highway accidents.
The intended purpose of the tope was to serve as a safety measure to slow down traffic approaching the light near Soriana and a provisional opening in the roadway at the junction of Avenida Pepe Guizar. Instead, it created a hazard for unwary motorists.
Personnel from the municipality’s Public Works department installed the tope across the southbound lane of the highway just past the Productos Sane manufacturing plant. A rear end collision between a car and a truck occurred barely two hours later, before workmen finished painting yellow cautionary lines in the roadway.
At least three other fender benders and complaints of vehicle suspension damage were reported the ensuing hours. By morning, Public Works Director Rodolfo Paredes ordered removal of the speed bump.
The fiasco stems from the reconstruction of Calle Venustiano Carranza, the diagonal street adjacent to the Pemex station, also launched early Monday morning.
The gap in the median strip was devised over the previous weekend as a temporary detour route for vehicles traveling westward off of Avenida Pepe Guizar towards the center of town. Left turns from the highway on to Pepe Guizar are prohibited. Traffic heading towards Las Redes and the highway to Mezcala is being directed north on Madero past the service station to turn right at the traffic light. Traffic police and municipal tourist inspectors have been posted to guide motorists during peak hours.
On Tuesday, Paredes said his goal is to finish the street project by mid-September. It entails replacing underground water and sewage mains and resurfacing 2,300 square meters with cobblestones set in cement.