The earthquake of January 9 with its epicenter in front of the Honduras coast that was also felt in the Yucatan peninsula in Mexico, caused huge damage to the Cozumel island ciclovía (Spanish for “bike path”).
Initially called “only” a mudslide of about 50 meters, the damage doubled its extension when the asphalt layer gave way and ended up on the beach that borders. This incident took place one kilometer away from Playa Bonita, in the eastern part of the island, at kilometer 40, located parallel to the two lanes eastern road.
This work of infrastructure, which is emblematic of the so-called island of sports, began to deteriorate in 2016 without being attended at the time.
In this regard, Jorge Portilla Mánica, head of the Department of Infrastructure and Transportation (SINTRA) of the State of Quintana Roo, argued that the bike path had not been repaired because the environmental procedures are very slow.
The erosion of the wind and the waves caused the first landslides at the end of 2016 and for 2017 it worsened to the extent that this area was not used by the cyclists who participated in the New York – Cozumel Gran Fondo competition.
So far it is unknown if SINTRA will have the budget to repair the bike path this year. During a tour of the area on Wednesday January 10, it was possible to estimate that the earthquake significantly affected the asphalt layer located about five meters high from the beach area.
Source: Novedades Quintana Roo
