It was a déjà vu nightmare for local motorists last week when a work crew from Jalisco’s Infrastructure and Public Works Department (SIOP) began repaving the section of the Chapala-Jocotepec highway in the vicinity of the turnoff to the Libramiento bypass.
The intersection was closed on Friday, June 21 and local traffic officers were out in force to help guide cars, trucks and buses through tortuous detour routes. Lengthy traffic backups stretched out in all directions through late Saturday afternoon.
It wasn’t the first SIOP intervention at the busy crossroads, but perhaps the most complicated one to date for drivers. The most recent change was the removal of speed bumps (topes) in the exit lane from the Libramiento heading towards Ajijic.
But hold on. The repaving project is still not finished. According to the Chapala City Hall press office, the next step will be repainting traffic lane lines and directional signals on the new asphalt surface. That work will include marking a left turn lane for westbound drivers to access the Walmart parking lot when cued by a green arrow traffic light.
Once all that is done, the mysteries of a diagram of the intersection that the local government published back in May might finally come to light. At least until the SIOP authorities cook up another “improvement” plan.