Construction of the Innovation Bridge begins: what will the access to Lugones Avenue be like?

Starting next Monday, the company Autopistas Urbanas (AUSA) will close the entrance to Lugones from Labruna bridge for motorists traveling through Udaondo towards Avenida Del Libertador, due to the start of works to build the Innovation Bridge.

According to the Government of the City of Buenos Aires, vehicles that need to enter Lugones will be able to do so through Pampa, taking Udaondo-Alcorta-Juramento-Castañeda-La Pampa-Lugones as an alternative. The entrance from Udaondo to Lugones located on the opposite side, towards the Río de la Plata, will remain enabled.

What the project is about

The project consists of retrofitting the Labruna Bridge through the incorporation of new vehicular entry and exit branches for Lugones and Cantilo avenues. A pedestrian walkway of dimensions in accordance with the new demand of pedestrians and cyclists will also be added.

The proposal expands the bridgewhich today has one lane in each direction, moving to a road that will be twice as wide, with two lanes in each direction of travel. New connections are also generated to enable the entry and exit of Lugones and Cantilo, linking in a safer way the different spaces that are located in that Buenos Aires area, which are of great importance and drive a large amount of neighborhood movement: the stadium Antonio Vespucio Liberti (Club Atlético River Plate), the City of Buenos Aires Club, the Torcuato Di Tella University, the Innovation Park, the National High Performance Center Deportivo (CeNARD), the Ciudad Universitaria station of FC Belgrano, the graduate center of the Liceo Naval, the Club Universitario Buenos Aires (CUBA), the Ciudad Universitaria de Buenos Aires, the Northern Ecological Reserve and the Parque de la Memoria.

Better access for pedestrians and bicycles

It also seeks to improve pedestrian accessibility with a walkway approximately 4 meters wide, plus a 2.40 m bike path separated by a mountable cordon (it currently has a walkway of just 1.60 meters). A U-shaped concrete guide was included on the sides of the stairs, to give bicycles an alternative route to the pedestrian ramps.

The entrance to bridge from the Innovation Park it will materialize with a gentle slope, generating inclined esplanades that will serve as a space for rest and recreation, providing continuity between the park and the bridge deck. In the central area, where the slope is higher, a green terrace is proposed between the access stairs, which serves as both a space for permanence and an amphitheater to supply the Park. Next, there will be a sports area, with different elements for exercise and another children’s play area.

Currently, the Labruna Bridge It has one vehicular lane in each direction of traffic, with a 1.60m wide pedestrian walkway on the southeastern edge, from which you can access the “Ciudad Universitaria” station of FC Belgrano Norte. This structure becomes insufficient given the new uses and densities of the area, which generate an incipient demand for traffic and a greater influx of pedestrians.

The new Innovation Park already has new uses for the technology companies and Startups that work there, students who are beginning to visit it and neighbors who seek the attractiveness of the new neighborhood to walk around. This new demand will increase considerably as the ongoing projects progress, which include a residential area with commercial premises and services.

The bridge will function as an urban connector that integrates the coastal sectors in this part of the city with the Núñez neighborhood, thus helping to resolve this historic disconnection, incorporating an elevated park.