The Road to Nowhere?

[giltner68]

Actually even nowhere is somewhere, but it is with heavy heart I must report a(nother) colossal failure of the Mexican highway system. For two years I've been anxiously awaiting the completion of the E Periferico extension basically bypassing Guadalajara/Tonala and connecting to the Cuota, to the border. Just imagine not having to risk life and limb driving up over the hill and through the mixmaster to get to the E bound Cuota - wow, that's progress.

This morning, in the reading room, I noted in the Reporter an article that the new extension was open - I was excited. I jumped in the car and headed N to explore.It's quite a nice road (by MXN standards) 6 lanes wide and no traffic, hundreds of light poles etc, they spared no expense. I kept driving and driving past where we normally get off to go to Tonala and I'm thinking hmm, I must have missed the sign to Tonala? And sure enough, pretty soon I'm on the North Periferico clear up on the N side of Guad?

So, I retraced my steps watching the GPS to see where I crossed the Cuota going through Tonala and turns out I didn't miss the sign, I didn't miss the exit - mainly because THERE IS NO EXIT??? They built a beautiful 6 lane highway that goes UNDER the Cuota but doesn't connect? I pulled over and looked around and I didn't see any exit/entrance, only a dinky back road into Tonala I've driven twice which is more than enough. Now, I'll admit MXN roads are a mystery to me, but I swear there is no connection to the Cuota - making this road mostly useless to us here at the lake.

I was so disappointed I didn't even go anywhere in Guad etc. I just hung my head and came back home. Here was a perfect way to keep traffic out of the main E Guad "mixmaster hub" by diverting it N or S and they did nothing - wow, if you can explain the logic of this I'd love to hear it - even better if you can explain why people are actually being paid to "plan" roads like this I would love to hear it.

Edit: Spelling corrected

[satnrose]

No, I can't inderstand the plan, and that is true for a lot of situations. I've given up trying to sort anything out.

[The new one]

in Mx the roads are not built for practical purposes, they are built in order to get the "right" figures about the budget they have to "manage" and justify....

[bmh]

what is the couta?

[Animalover]

he meant "cuota",

[giltner68]

Yes, thank you, for the life of me I can't ever spell that right.

[Ezzie]

There MAY be another plan to get from the old Hwy. 80 eastbound (Libre)onto the 80E eastbound (Cuota)towards Lagos de Moreno. I noticed on my last time through on the bypass that there is a new overpass and highway being built a little further east of where the bypass crosses 80 Libre. Maybe the plan is to eventually connect the Metropolitan Sur to 80E somewhere east of where you are talking about? I did the same as you did a couple of weeks ago but noticed right away that there were no exit ramps as you passed under the toll road.

[giltner68]

Oh, I believe there is already a way if you follow the old libre to the town of Zapotlanejo, but it's a tortured trip once you get off the new road, that's why I was excited, what a perfect road this could be if it connected, but it's not. When I come back South I usually hit Guad about 5pm and after driving 11 hours from Laredo I'm in no mood for traffic at the mixmaster and the Capala Hwy creeping past the Tapatio.

[rogueking]

I personally do not care for the cuoto going to Aguas Calientes & Zacatecas. It is a much more pleasant & FREE drive to go north from Periferico near the ZOO by taking Hwy 54 to Saltillo. It puts you out ABOVE Zacatecas onto a lovely free 4 lane highway until you reach Saltillo where they have built a recent cuoto road worth every penny DIRECTLY to the Laredo Border WITHOUT having to go through Saltillo or Monterrey like you used to have to do. Happy Trails...

[exHawaiian]

Thanks rogueking. That sounds great. Monterrey is so traffic-bound.

[Mainecoons]

Oh, I believe there is already a way if you follow the old libre to the town of Zapotlanejo, but it's a tortured trip once you get off the new road, that's why I was excited, what a perfect road this could be if it connected, but it's not. When I come back South I usually hit Guad about 5pm and after driving 11 hours from Laredo I'm in no mood for traffic at the mixmaster and the Capala Hwy creeping past the Tapatio.

Now that the route has been cleared of bandits masquerading as cops, we go that way every time we go to Texas and it is hardly tortured. It's actually very straightforward. 6.8 miles in from the entrance at the airport, you take the Zapotlanejo exit, you go under the twin bridges just outside of the Zapotlanjo exit gate, go left up onto libre 80, go a mile and a quarter and take the clearly marked exit for Lagos de Moreno that puts you up on the cuota. Fast, easy and you bypass the first toll booth.