Road Stabilization and Drainage Improvements in North Potosi, Bolivia - Improving Access to Markets, Clinics, Schools, and Facilitating Future Development

摘要

In a remote and extremely impoverished region of southwestern Bolivia, the only road connecting five communities to the outside world has been historically washed out multiple times per year. With the support of TRANSNOW, the University of Washington chapter of Engineers Without Borders (EWB-UWS) partnered with these small communities to implement a rural roads improvement project in July and August, 2010. Over the course of these two months, the EWB-UWS team implemented a number of robust but low-cost designs aimed at improving drainage and reducing the impact of erosion. These designs included gabion walls, drywalls, cemented drywalls, and armored crossings. The implemented designs promise to keep the road open for nearly the entire year, and reduce the burden of maintenance for the estimated 380 residents of the communities who rely on the road.