Following a series of imprecise and incomplete information that misled the population about the closure of the Choupal Tunnel, next to the Açude Bridge, which has been planned since the beginning as part of the construction project for the Portagem-Coimbra B section of the Mondego Mobility System (SMM), carried out by Infraestruturas de Portugal (IP), Metro-Mondego (MM) and the Municipality of Coimbra consider it appropriate to provide the following clarifications:
1. Tunnel Intervention
The decision to intervene in the Choupal Tunnel was taken by the Municipality of Coimbra and implemented in 2019, due to the impossibility of creating a railway level crossing at that location. With this intervention, a sidewalk was created to improve pedestrian safety, by reducing the width of the carriageway, which required the installation of a traffic light system to manage alternating traffic.
2. Inclusion in the SMM Project
The elimination of the Choupal Tunnel has been planned since the Light Rail project and was implemented in the preliminary study of the SMM Metrobus, approved by the Municipality of Coimbra in March 2019.
3. New Crossing with Greater Capacity
The cessation of rail traffic at the site will allow the implementation of a level crossing, regulated by traffic lights, greatly improving mobility once the works are completed. This new crossing will guarantee two lanes of traffic, allowing the reestablishment of the simultaneous crossing in both directions that had been eliminated with the intervention in the tunnel, and thus increasing the fluidity of traffic. It is estimated that, during periods of high traffic, the need for short interruptions to road traffic for the Metrobus to pass will occur every 3 minutes, ensuring that the crossing traffic will be carried out more fluidly than before. Pedestrian traffic should also benefit from more open and comfortable circuits, since they will be ensured by flat, level circuits, eliminating inclined sidewalks and staircase connections.
4. Urban Redevelopment and Soft Mobility
The ongoing intervention will allow for the reorganisation of road traffic in the surrounding area, increase the number of green areas, improve pedestrian traffic conditions and create a functional interface with the public transport lines that serve the population of the northern part of the municipality.
5. Maintenance and Improvement of the Road Connection
It is important to highlight that the elimination of the Choupal Tunnel does not imply the elimination of the connection between Choupal/Ponte Açude and Avenida Fernão de Magalhães. On the contrary, this connection, in the final solution, will be reinforced with a solution with greater capacity and more in line with current mobility standards. This connection will also be ensured during the construction phase, which, using preparatory work, will safeguard the continuity of traffic movements on R. Pinto dos Santos, where buses that ensure the road transfer from Coimbra B will continue to circulate.
6. Urban Framework and Quality of Public Space
This intervention is fully in line with the new Detailed Plan for the Coimbra B – Toll road link, the integrated planning of which is being carried out by Architect Juan Busquets and which has already been approved by the current municipal executive, making an extraordinarily decisive contribution to the in-depth improvement of public space and the harmonious urban integration of this area of the city.
MM and the Municipality of Coimbra reiterate their commitment to building sustainable, efficient mobility solutions aimed at improving the quality of life of all residents, which will be immediately felt by everyone as soon as the system goes into operation, a speed to which all entities involved are committed.
