Meet the Worst Road in Brazil, Where Accidents and Losses are Common

01/09/2017 - 14h59

Old, dangerous, no signs, tight corners, narrow bridges and a significant amount of holes and wrinkles - the 262-kilometer road that connects the cities of Luis Eduardo Magalhães (Bahia) and Natividade (Tocantins) made truck driver Rafael Balan lose all the money he would make by transporting the load.

A study by the CNT (National Confederation of Transport) shows that it is just a small part of the equation that makes Brazil lose R$ 2.3 billion (US$ 716 million) every year due to the bad quality of its paved streets and roads.

The poor quality of the roads leads to financial losses - the confederation estimates that every truck that drives along that area spends 48% more than it does on a good road - as well as lives.

There were 110 accidents on that road in 2014 which led to 12 deaths, adding to the estimated 44,000 deaths that occur every year in traffic in Brazil.

"More people die on Brazilian roads than in countries at war,"says Bruno Batista, the executive diretor of CNT, who estimates a cost of R$ 187 million (US$ 58 million) to fix up the road visited by the Folha reporters.

	Pedro Ladeira/Folhapress
	The poor quality of the roads leads to financial losses as well as lives.

To drive on Brazil's worst road, truck drivers say that they need to go at very low speeds for several kilometers. They might have to brake hard at any momomnet.

Data of  a study by consulatnts Bain & Company show that the country only has 14,000 kilometers of very good roads – two-way roads, with shoulders and good sings, called highways. The number representes less than one tenth of the total American and Chinese roads in the same conditions, two other countries with huge areas.

Translated by THOMAS MUELLO

Read the article in the original language