Vía Blanca

Vía Blanca is a highway in northern Cuba, connecting the capital city of Havana and the city of Matanzas. A second section extends eastwards from Matanzas to the tourist town of Varadero and to Cárdenas. Even if it is a motorway (autopista), it is part of the national highway named "Circuito Norte" (CN).

Vía Blanca
White Road
Map of the Cuban motorway network
Bacunayagua Bridge
(Puente de Bacunayagua)
Route information
Length150 km (90 mi)
136 km (motorway)[1]
Existed1960[2]–present
Major junctions
West endHavana
East endCárdenas
Location
Major citiesHavana, Santa Cruz del Norte, Matanzas, Varadero, Cárdenas
Highway system
Roads in Cuba
Cuban map highlighting the Vía Blanca
A rest area in Guanabo, Havana
Passing through Boca de Jaruco oil field
A rest area in Santa Cruz del Norte
The Mirador de Bacunayagua over Bacunayagua Bridge
The motorway in Matanzas
The Canímar Bridge (Puente de Canímar) in Matanzas
The motorway in Boca de Camarioca
The motorway near Varadero
The motorway southwest of Varadero
A police patrol on the city beltway of Varadero (Autopista Sur)

History

The motorway, connected to the A2 (Havana Ring Road), was opened in 1960. Its construction begun in 1945 with the bridge of Bacunayagua,[3] on the Mayabeque/Matanzas province border. This is the highest Cuban bridge and was completed in 1960.

Route

Overview

It is mostly a four lane highway, with some divided sections. It runs east-west for 85 km between Havana and Matanzas, crossing the town of Santa Cruz del Norte, and an additional 53 km east to Varadero, at the northern tip of Peninsula de Hicacos (the section between Matanzas and Varadero is a toll road). Most of the highway runs along the Straits of Florida shoreline. This is one of the busiest highways in Cuba, as it joins the two tourist destinations of Havana and Varadero.

Description

Vía Blanca starts at the Ciudad Deportiva, on the south-western side of Havana, between Cerro and Diez de Octubre. It runs for 12 km through Luyanó and Old Havana border, the harbour area, Regla and Guanabacoa, before crossing the Vía Monumental in Habana del Este. A brief section in Luyanó includes the route of the Carretera Central highway.

The motorway-type section (138 kilometres (86 mi)) starts in Havana, on a roundabout (Rotonda de Cojímar) before the Monumental, and ends north of Cárdenas. In Matanzas city center it crosses the seafront. It is a dual carriageway road, with four lanes for almost the entire route, but there are six lanes for a short section in east Havana. It has some at-grade intersections with rural roads. The exit at Varadero is the starting point of an 18-km long beltway, named Autopista Sur ("South Motorway"), that runs through the town.

The table below shows the exits of the motorway-type section of the Vía Blanca:

AUTOPISTA "VÍA BLANCA"
Exit↓km↓ProvinceNote
Habana Redonda Cojímar0.0Havana 
Primer Anillo (Havana Beltway)
(Vía Monumental - link to other motorways)		1.2Havana 
Habana Alamar3.3Havana 
Habana Bacuranao-Celimar7.0Havana 
Habana Tarará10.7Havana 
Habana Mégano11.6Havana 
Habana Santa María del Mar12.4Havana 
Rest area "Guanabo"16.9Mayabeque 
Habana Guanabo17.0Havana 
Rest area18.0Havana 
Habana Peñas Altas-Veneciana
(to Guanabo East)		19.6Havana 
Habana Brisas del Mar20.5Havana 
Playa del Muerto
(Boca de Jaruco Oil Field)		26.2Mayabeque 
Boca de Jaruco31.4Mayabeque 
Termoeléctrica de Santa Cruz
(restricted access - employees only)		39.2Mayabeque 
Santa Cruz del Norte41.5Mayabeque 
Rest area "Servicentro Vía Blanca"42.7Mayabeque 
Santa Cruz del Norte-Jaruco
(Camilo Cienfuegos - to San José de las Lajas)		42.8Mayabeque 
El Fraile47.5Mayabeque 
Playa Jibacoa50.3Mayabeque 
Concuní52.5Mayabeque 
Rest area "Quiosco Guarapiña Gil Alberto"56.5Mayabeque 
Arcos de Canasí-Puerto Libre
(to Playa Jibacoa)		57.8Mayabeque 
Batey San Juan60.3Mayabeque 
Puerto Escondido64.2Mayabeque 
Bacunayagua66.7Mayabeque 
Mirador de Bacunayagua
(overlooking point of Bacunayagua Bridge)		69.1Mayabeque 
Puente de Bacunayagua69.2Mayabeque
Matanzas		 
Bacunayagua Este71.8Matanzas[4] 
Rincón Moderno74.9Matanzas 
Rest area "Restaurante La Criolla"77.9Matanzas 
Valle del Yumurí
(San Roque - San Valentín)		83.4Matanzas 
Matanzas Puerto87.0Matanzas 
Matanzas Versalles88.2Matanzas 
Matanzas Centro89.1Matanzas 
Matanzas La Playa90.6Matanzas 
Matanzas Calle 129-Cuevas de Bellamar91.6MatanzasCC route
Matanzas Peñas Altas93.5MatanzasCC route
Matanzas Reynold García95.7Matanzas 
Matanzas Universidad97.0Matanzas 
Canímar97.8Matanzas 
Puente de Canímar98.1Matanzas 
San Felipe98.3Matanzas 
Escuela Militar Camilo Cienfuegos
(restricted access - FAR military school)		39.2Matanzas 
El Mamey99.5Matanzas 
Carbonera-Aeropuerto J.G.Gómez
(to Cueva de Saturno)		106.0Matanzas 
Boca de Camarioca-Camarioca115.0Matanzas 
Boca de Camarioca116.0Matanzas 
Julián Alemán118.0Matanzas 
Toll plaza118.5Matanzas 
Varadero-Playa Caleta121.0Matanzas 
Varadero
( 18-km beltway to Varadero town center)		124.0Matanzas 
Santa Marta125.0Matanzas 
Santa Marta Parque Industrial127.0Matanzas 
Guásimas-Humberto Álvarez129.0Matanzas 
Cárdenas Cementerio135.0Matanzas 
Cárdenas Brisas del Mar
(Cárdenas City Hospital)		136.0Matanzas 
Cárdenas Centro138.0Matanzas 
Vía Blanca – Varadero City Beltway (Autopista Sur)
Exit↓km↓ProvinceNote
Varadero–Vía Blanca (main route)0.0Matanzas 
Varadero Oeste0.5Matanzas 
Varadero Calle 17-Isla del Sur1.0Matanzas 
Varadero Calle 241.5Matanzas 
Varadero Calle 302.0Matanzas 
Varadero Calle 36-Terminal de Ómnibus2.5Matanzas 
Varadero Parque Central3.3Matanzas 
Varadero Parque Josone4.1Matanzas 
Varadero Avenida Primera5.0Matanzas 
Varadero Calle K6.6Matanzas 
Varadero Golf Club8.6Matanzas 
Varadero Plaza America9.2Matanzas 
Varadero Sol Elite Palmeras10.0Matanzas 
Varadero Bella Vista10.6Matanzas 
Varadero Ocean Vista10.9Matanzas 
Varadero Naviti Beach Club11.1Matanzas 
Varadero Arena Doradas/British Caribe12.1Matanzas 
Varadero Muthu Playa/Turquesa12.5Matanzas 
Varadero Delfinarium13.1Matanzas 
Varadero Camino Milián13.6Matanzas 
Varadero Aguas Azules14.0Matanzas 
Varadero Hicacos14.3Matanzas 
Varadero Varahicacos15.6Matanzas 
Varadero Memories16.5Matanzas 
Varadero Meliá Península17.1Matanzas 
Varadero Meliá Marina18.0Matanzas 

See also

References
  1. Vía Blanca on EcuRed (see infobox)
  2. Cuban defenses
  3. Cuban defenses – Via Blanca (Spanish)
  4. Note: the village is in Mayabeque Province, the exit in Matanzas' one
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