Deep below the centre of Rio de Janeiro, crucial work towards the revitalisation of the city’s port region is progressing at full steam. From Monday to Saturday, 24 hours day, an expert team of engineers, geologists, technicians and labourers are carving out two huge tunnels that will improve traffic flow, allowing for the recuperation of an important swathe of Rio’s heritage and the creation of a vibrant new neighbourhood.    

The Via Binário and Via Expressa tunnels, which reach depths of 46 metres, will play a key role in the Porto Maravilha project that is renovating about five million metres squared of land.

A workforce of around 1,000 people is employed on this important project for the city – a project that was discussed for decades but did not get off the drawing boards until Rio won the right to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games, which proved to be the catalyst for its realisation.

The Via Binário tunnel, which will stretch for 1,480m when finished, is already 77 per cent complete and is scheduled to be concluded in the second half of 2014. After passing through a testing period, the tunnel will become part of  3,500m Binário do Porto road, that has been in operation since November 2013.

Running parallel is the 6,847m Expressa road that will connnect the city centre with major routes such as Aterro do Flamengo, Avenida Brasil and the Rio-Niterói bridge. The tunnel part comprises 3,022m and is already 54 per cent completed with works scheduled to finish in December 2015. Once in operation, in 2016, in will be the largest urban tunnel in Brazil.

Work carries on around the clock, 46 metres below ground level (Photo: Rio 2016/Alex Ferro)

Diverting the traffic flow underground has allowed for the staggered demolition of the Perimetral viaduct, an elevated concrete highway built in the 1950s that had condemned much of the region to the shadows and blocked the sea view.  

The first part of the Porto Maravilha project, called Operação Urbana Porto Maravilha, started in 2009 with the installation of 48km of drainage, sewage, natural gas, telecommunications and streetlighting networks, in addition to 350,000m² of road and pavement resurfacing.

In 2011, the scope of the project was expanded and the new road system was designed  to improve the flow of traffic across the metropolitan region, integrating the three zones of Rio: central, north and west, and increasing traffic capacity by 27 per cent.

A new 28km light rail transit (LRT) network will integrate with other transport services, such as the metro, Bus Rapid Transit, main bus and railway stations, ferry port and domestic airport. Its first two lines are scheduled to start running at the end of 2014, with all six lines in operation by 2016.

There are also projects aimed at recuperating the cultural heritage and architecture of the region, such as the restoration of important buildings, including a former royal residence and a 17th century church. The region’s rich gastronomical and musical heritage – especially in samba music – is being promoted, while other cultural initiatives include the creation of the Rio Museum of Art (which opened last year), the Museum of Tomorrow (scheduled to open next year) and the preservation of African cultural artefacts –  remnants of the slave trade – discovered during excavations. 

The video below, produced by the Rio city government, shows the development of the Port Maravilha project (note: the on screen text is currently only available in Portuguese):