Bridging the Gulf on La Septima

Workers lay a huge beam across the bridge over 26th St.

Today, bridge construction on La Septima reached a landmark as workers laid the iron beams bridging the gap over 26th St.

Graffiti taggers managed to get to this beam.

The bridge and the new lanes below it are are part of the project extending the TransMilenio express bus system to the airport. The construction has a long way to go yet, and I don't see how it can be operating even partially by June, as Mayor Gustavo Petro has promised. But at least it's taking shape.

About 80 days left to go (hopefully) on the project.
The countdown sign's second digit has fallen off. 

Ave. Septima still contains huge pits, where they're building the Museo Nacional transit station. City leaders say that won't be completed until early next year. Let's hope. The whole project was originally supposed to be operating in 2010. The delays, cost overruns and alleged corruption have ex-Mayor Samuel Rojas and his brother, a senator, in jail.

But all this digging and building may be only a hint of what's to come if the city next starts out on two more TransMilenio lines, a light rail on La Septima and - the mother of all infrastructure - a subway.

Ciclovia users look into one of the huge excavations on Seventh Ave.l

By Mike Ceaser, of Bogotá Bike Tours

One More Year!!!???

A unicyclist pedals behind a bus across the half-demolished Seventh Ave. bridge over 26th St.

Work left to do:
26th St. at 7th Ave. 

In an interview in today's El Tiempo new Mayor Gustavo Petro says that the 26th St. Transmilenio line - which was supposed to be completed in 2010 - will not be operating in March of this year, or even in August, as temporary Mayor Clara Lopez had promised.

A car makes its way down
26th St., amid construction.

Petro said that, because of various delays, particularly the need to demolish and rebuild Seventh Ave.'s bridge over 26th St., the project would not be operating until 2013.

Hopefully, Petro was describing a worst-case scenario in order to see the project finished earlier and appear efficient. He suggested as much, by asserting that the bridge project should take much less than a year.

The trench on Seventh leads to the
planned National Museum TM station. 

Lots of other projects also need finishing: the city still hasn't managed to purchase a plot of land it needs for an on-ramp near the City Council building because the owners are insisting on more money. And the huge roof structure being built over 26th east of Seventh Ave. to connect Independence Park with the Museum of Modern Art has been delayed by neighbors' lawsuits. And then there's the National Museum TransMilenio station, where work is just starting.

Several of the pedestrian
bridges over 26th are completed
 and being used, altho not
officially open yet.

The delays are frustrating not only because finally getting TransMilenio running on these avenues would facilitate the city's transit. More critically, these two TransMilenio corridors are required for Bogotá's more ambitious plan to get traffic moving and reduce pollution: the Integrated System of Public Transit (SITP). Beyond that are the planned subway and possible streetcar line along Seventh Ave.

Of course, all of these ambitous infrastructure plans mean another thing: Expect Bogotá to resemble one big construction site for a long, long, time.

26th from overhead. 

Seventh Ave's bridge is already half-demolished. 

Heavy work on Seventh Ave. 

By Mike Ceaser, of Bogotá Bike Tours

The Neverending Story of La Septima

The future 'Green Ave. Septima'?

First, it was a full-scale Transmilenio line along Seventh Ave. up to 170th St. Then, a Transmilenio 'light' line up to 100th St., more or less. And now it's a 'green corridor' with bike lanes, an electric bus line and zero emissions.

Seventh Ave. today - jammed up. 

Well, that's just wonderful. Carrera Septima., Bogotá's most historic and representative avenue, really does deserve a makeover that will transform its current chaos, pollution and congestion into something clean and efficient and even pleasant. But this zero-emission 'green corridor' is another utopian dream that's never gonna happen.

And, who can believe that a city government which doesn't even try to enforce emissions laws on the outrageously polluting vehicles on the streets today is gonna eliminate them completely on Seventh Ave? Perhaps they will require all the avenue's neighbors to use only electric cars and bicycles?

Sadly, leftist governments, like the one now supposedly running Bogotá, too often make the ideal the opposite of the doable, and end up getting nothing done. Fortunately, the Polo Democratico Party which is now running the city will be out of office by the end of the year and hopefully the next mayor will choose something more realistic.

Close to finding Atlantis? Preliminary excavations have turned part of Ave. Septima into a huge pit. 

A city employee wears a mask against fumes. 

A first step toward a green city: enforcing pollution laws.

By Mike Ceaser, of Bogotá Bike Tours

Transit Insanity on Seventh Ave.

Seventh Ave.: already congested.

Let's get this all straight: Bogotá has terrible traffic congestion, worsened by the behind-schedule Transmilenio expansion work which has sections of two main avenues shut down.

Preliminary work has already
begun on Seventh Ave. 

And, at the end of July and August, Colombia is to host the under-20 World Cup, its biggest-ever sporting event, and the country wants desperately to pull off a succesful show.

Despite all of this, at least some Bogotá officials wanted to shut down Seventh Ave. beginning this Monday, to start work on another Transmilenio line. This brilliant plan was backed by the administration of Mayor Samuel Moreno, who is now suspended from office and appears to be headed toward trial because of the scandal around the two other Transmilenio line expansions. (His brother, a senator, is already in prison.)

Fortunately, today the Institute for Urban Development (IDU) postponed the start of the work on Seventh Ave. for another three months. However, the city should push it back further and reconsider the whole deal.

Of course, Seventh Ave, badly needs some sort of efficient mass transit to replace the chaos and pollution of Seventh Ave. However, 'Transmilenio Light' plan was invented by the same Moreno administration which apparently was as concerned with filling its officials' pockets as improving Bogotá's transit. Work on Seventh Ave. has now been postponed so many times that the construction will be left to the next mayoral administration - and the frontrunner for the job, Enrique Peñalosa, advocates instead a full-scale Transmilenio line on Seventh.

Rather than forcing the city's next mayor to carry out a project which he or she doesn't believe in and which was probably cooked up with corruption, Bogotá should hold off on the Seventh Ave. until there's a consensus and a well thought-out plan for it. That plan might be a version of Transmilenio, a subway, a light rail line, a trolley or a combination of the above. But Seventh is the city's most historic and emblematic avenue and deserves to be done right. 

By Mike Ceaser, of Bogotá Bike Tours

Which way for La Septima?

Get me out of this traffic jam! The daily drama on Seventh Ave. 

The debate over what to do about bringing efficient public transit to La Septima continues...and continues....and continuess...

Recently, newspaper columnists and political leaders like mayoral candidate David Luna have criticized Mayor Samuel Moreno's 'Transmilenio light' plan for La Septima. Today, it received perhaps its death blow, when Mayor Samuel Moreno agreed to yet again postpone the project, at the request of Pres. Juan Manuel Santos, who said that Bogotá "would collapse" with even more street projects right now. (Carrera 10 and Calle 26 are already partially closed for Transmilenio construction.)

The National Museum, on Seventh Ave. 

For those who don't follow the twists and u-turns of Bogotá transit policy, previous administrations had planned Transmilenio lines for Seventh Ave. The street carries lots of historical and cultural value for Bogotanos. It also carries lots of traffic and connects some of the city's wealthiest (and private car dependant) neighborhoods to downtown. 

Seventh Ave. is special because it passes by many city landmarks, including Plaza Bolivar, the Presidential Palace, the National Park and National Museum and others. All those historical landmarks make it more difficult to fit a mass transit line onto La Septima, which is considerably narrower than avenues like La Caracas and La Decima.

Preliminary work along Seventh has already begun - just a taste of the traffic distrubances to come. 

That was one reason the Moreno administration used to justify slimming down the original TM plans to a 'TM light' with only a single lane in either direction - and no special lanes at all in north Bogotá - as well as little urban renewal work. Critics say the solution's the worst of both options - lots of expense and transit disruption for a half-baked transit line with very limited capacity. But Moreno has pointed out that his much-planned and much-promised metro line would run parallel to the Seventh, serving much of the ridership demand along the corridor.

Is there anything good about this?

Many neighbors of the Septima, who I suspect live in their cars, argue that such an important and emblematic avenue shouldn't be ripped up for a half-baked transit project which will certainly generate horrendous traffic jams during at least one year of construction. But they ignore the reality that this very emblematic avenue is now chaotic and polluted, that it suffers chronic traffic jams and will only get worse without fundamental changes. Today's El Tiempo editorial points out that right now we've got the worst of both worlds.

The weak link in the mayor's reasoning is that the metro work won't happen soon - if ever, despite Moreno's and Santos' assurances. The Moreno administration is embroiled in a corruption scandal over the TM expansions on 10th Ave and 26th Street. His subway plans have been widely criticized. it's not clear where the money will come from. And Moreno's got barely a half year left in office. Candidates are already campaigning to succeed him - and the early leader, ex-mayor Enrique Peñalosa, has historically opposed a subway as too expensive.

So, the subway is unlikely to happen soon, if ever, which means that Seventh Ave. will carry more and more vehicles during the next years, making a full-scale TM line necessary. And, Seventh Ave. really is special for Bogotá - so it deserves to be done right, with well-designed stations, artwork, green spaces and improvements to public spaces along the way. 

La Septima even has Shakira and her new boyfriend stalled.

Update: At a public hearing in the City Council building this Wednesday, transit officials asserted that Seventh Ave. is simply too narrow to fit eight lanes of traffic which would be standard for a full-scale Transmilenio line and four more lanes for the rest of the traffic. The Transit Secretary also said that building an underpass planned as part of the full-scale Transmilenio system would require closing Seventh Ave. for two full years.

Rail Future for La Septima?

Other speakers at the meeting argued in favor of a full Transmilenio line for the avenue, declaring that a subway will not come soon, if ever. And several speakers argued for a streetcar or light rail line for the avenue. In my view, advantages of light rail would include the reduced pollution and less maintenance costs. Also, high-income people seem to be more inclined to ride rail than buses. However, light rail would be less flexible and require passengers to off-board to transfer to and from the Transmilenio system. 

Finally, one speaker mentioned possible World Bank-financing to turn Seventh Ave. into something called a 'green corridor.' A nice fantasy!

In any case, the politicos have agreed that construction on Septima won't start full-bore until the TM lines on Carrera 10 and Calle 26 are completed.

By Mike Ceaser, of Bogotá Bike Tours

Will they, or won't they? And they've gotta do something!

Seventh Ave. today: chaotic, polluted and usually congested. 

Seventh is Bogotá's most emblematic avenue - it passes by the seat of government, the bullfighting plaza, National Museum, National and Independence parks and the La Candelaria, Teusaquillo, Chapinero and Usaquen neighborhoods. It's also the city's traditional shopping street.

Sadly, this important corridor of the city is often chaotic, congested, polluted and dangerous. For years, Bogotá governments have planned public transit systems for Seventh Ave. Should it be light rail? A subway? Or another Transmilenio line?

The previous city government had planned a full-blown Transmilenio line for Seventh, with a price tag of about  $800 billion pesos. Mayor Samuel Moreno scaled the plans back to a 'Transmilenio light,' lacking overpasses and public space improvements along the avenue, at a cost of only about $80 billion pesos. The Moreno administration argued that a planned subway line running parallel to Seventh would carry much of the passenger load.

No turning back? Seventh Ave.'s already half dug up. 

The project has been contracted out, and work was scheduled to begin at full steam on Dec. 27 (the west half of several blocks has already been dug up). But just a few days ago, in mid-December, the mayor postponed the start in the face of questions about whether the plans were ready and whether the scaled-back Transmilenio would have sufficient capacity. Yet another issue has been the fate of La Ciclovia's most important corridor, although city officials have promised that it will be preserved. The tremendous delays and cost overruns on the TM projects on 10th Ave. and 26th St. certainly also made people wary of yet another big dig.


Let's hope that they finally get things right on Seventh Ave. But, above all, that they finally move ahead with work on this crucial Bogotá corridor. 


By Mike Ceaser, of Bogotá Bike Tours