The unfinished Puerto Escondido-Oaxaca highway has been closed to traffic until further notice after authorities decided to put a stop to vehicles traveling through the active construction site.
Army and National Guard officials monitor the entrances to the road in an effort to prevent drivers from driving through the area.
It’s not the first time officials have closed the (unopened) highway but the route has become popular despite a couple of detours on gravel roads, because travel time is about three hours. That’s about half the time it takes to travel between Puerto Escondido and Oaxaca city on Highway 175 through San José del Pacífico.
Officials cited the high risk of landslides and getting stuck in the mud due to the rainy season as reasons to avoid the highway.
The opening date for the highway was most recently scheduled for the end of the year.
But Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said this week that he expected it to open in October.
With reports by RIOaxaca, Diario Marca
