President Luis Abinader took advantage of his weekly La Semanal press conference on 21 July 2025 to announce the inauguration of the Bani bypass road for 12 August 2025. The bypass is expected to shave at least half an hour off the driving time for those headed west. Those headed from Santo Domingo to Barahona will now be able to do so in less than two hours. The Baní bypass was the only one missing. The San Cristobal and the Azua bypasses are already in use.
The announcement follows a visit made by Minister of Public Works Eduardo Estrella to the bypass work areas on Monday, 21 July 2025, in the company of Listin Diario executive editor Miguel Franjul and reporters.
The Baní Bypass stretches over a distance of more than 20 kilometers, beginning in Ojo de Agua, in Paya, where it connects with the Sánchez Highway, and ending where it merges again with the same highway on the western side of the province in the Galión area.
Listin Diario explains that construction of this road began on 20 November 2020, when President Luis Abinader, along with the then Minister of Public Works, Deligne Ascención, announced that the project would be completed by September 2021—but that deadline was not met. Moreso, the provincial representatives rejected offers to partially open the bypass.
Listin Diario reports that in November 2020 it was announced that the project would cost RD$2.2 billion, but three years later, another bidding process was held for more than RD$3 billion, bringing the total estimated cost of the road close to RD$6 billion, three times the original estimated cost.
According to the contractors, the Baní Bypass is approximately 19.8 kilometers long and consists of two lanes—one in each direction. The most complex part of the highway, as explained by the current Public Works official, is the presence of 17 bridges along its route. Notably, at each of these bridges, the road expands to four lanes—two in each direction—accommodating the east-west traffic along the coastal area of the Baní municipality.
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La Semanal 39:40 minutes
Listin Diario
22 July 2025