UPDATE: Hiram Bingham road access to Machu Picchu

[Originally published January 15, 2014] Morning shuttle bus service schedule changed to accommodate road repairs.

Officials at Machu Picchu announced Wednesday that shuttle bus service up to the Inca citadel, which normally starts running just before sunrise, will now be delayed until 9:30 a.m. to give workers time to clear the remaining blocked stretch of the Hiram Bingham “Highway” (perhaps it’s time they rethink that name).

A predawn landslide last Friday dislodged a deluge of earth and giant granite boulders, washing over several corners of the narrow switchback road.

Workers were able to clear most of the earth, rocks and debris within the first two days of the landslide. Shuttle buses are now able to take visitors a quarter of the way up the road, to the sixth curve. There, passengers must get off, walk approximately 10 minutes up, past the blocked section of the road, and re-boarded other buses waiting to take them the rest of the way to the entrance of the ruins.

Daily newspaper El Comercio reported today that officials don’t have a very clear idea how many days it will take to completely clear the road. The estimate had been for next Monday or Tuesday, but Walter Quispe, an official with Cusco’s department of Civil Defense, was quoted saying engineers want to take it slow to diminish the possibility of dislodging more severe slides.

Officials are also evaluating whether to use heavy machinery to carve out a new temporary trail, but engineers are warning that in the midst of Cusco’s rainy season, the mountainside is particularly soggy and potentially unstable, and that such an ambitious project could be problematic.

Lesson for holidaymakers: Many travelers choose to arrange their Cusco vacation during the November-March rainy season. For most of them, it is a fulfilling journey well worth the effort. But, as this latest incident shows, it also entails some risk of delays, and can mean having to make last minute adjustments to your itinerary.

OFFICIAL PRESS No.3 DISTRICT MUNICIPALITY OF MACHU PICCHU

RELEASE N ° 003-2014 – MDM

The Emergency Operations Committee (COE) of the District Municipality of Machu Picchu, chaired by Mayor David Garcia Gayoso, facing the incident that recently occurred on the Hiram Bingham Highway, convened another meeting of representatives of the Platform for National Civil Defense, local experts on how to deal with natural disasters, and representatives of civil society. They pledged to support the work and actions for restoration of the road to access the Inca citadel of Machu Picchu. They also pledged to provide the appropriate security to tourists and visitors to our wonderful world.

This being so, the representatives of the Municipality of Machu Picchu, CONSETTUR, SERNANP, the ministries of Culture and Health, Geologists from the Universidad Nacional de San Antonio Abad del Cusco (UNSAAC) and Tourism Guides, adopted the following resolutions :

1 – The Office of Civil Defense of the District Municipality of Machu Picchu, will continue the rehabilitation of the affected areas on the Hiram Bingham road during the hours of 5:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m., which will mean restricted tourist bus service during that time starting Wednesday, Jan. 15 of this year, until further notice of changes in the rehabilitation schedules.

2 – The access time for Tourist buses will begin 9:30 a.m.

3 – Standardization of radio frequency communication between the following organizations: SERNANP, CONSETTUR, Ministry of Culture, District Municipality of Machu Picchu and the National Police of Peru, in order to strengthen the early warning system.

4 – CONSETTUR, must compile the technical file for the rehabilitation work and risk prevention.

5 – Prioritize cleanup and construction work at the  uppermost point where the landslide originated.

6 – Coordinate and determine with PeruRail new departure times with a delay of two hours, to facilitate tourist visits.

7 – Coordinate and identify with the Ministry of Culture, the extension of opening hours to tourists and visitors in an additional 30 minutes at normal visiting hours to Machu Picchu Historic Sanctuary, as well as three additional hours for the entry of tourists to Huaynapicchu.

Concluding their meeting, the chairman of the committee said coordination will continue at national and regional level to ensure timely restoration,  thinking about the safety of people visiting the Inca Sanctuary of Machu Picchu. He called on visitors and tourism operators to take into account this communication.

DISTRICT MUNICIPALITY OF MACHU PICCHU
MINISTRY OF CULTURE
CONSETTUR
SERNANP
PERU NATIONAL POLICE
UNIVERSIDAD DE NACIONAL DE SAN ANTONIO ABAD DEL CUSCO (UNSAAC)
CIVIL DEFENSE
FRONT OF DEFENSE
GUIDES

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COMUNICADO OFICIAL Nº 3 MUNICIPALIDAD DISTRITAL DE MACHUPICCHU

COMUNICADO N° 003-2014-MDM

El Comité de Operaciones de Emergencias (COE) de la Municipalidad Distrital de Machupicchu, presidido por el Sr. alcalde David Gayoso García, frente al suceso ocurrido recientemente en la carretera Hiram Bingham, convocó a una nueva reunión de representantes de la Plataforma de Defensa Civil Nacional y Local, expertos en materia de eventos por acción de la naturaleza, y los representantes de la sociedad civil. Todos ellos se comprometieron a apoyar los trabajos y acciones de restablecimiento del tránsito de la carretera para acceder a la ciudadela Inca de Machupicchu, así mismo se comprometieron a brindar la respectiva seguridad a los turistas y visitantes que llegan a nuestra maravilla mundial.

Siendo ello así, los representantes de la Municipalidad de Machupicchu, CONSETTUR, SERNANP, Ministerio de Cultura, MINSA, Geólogos de la UNSAAC y Guías de Turismo, adoptaron los siguientes acuerdos:

1- La Oficina de Defensa Civil de la Municipalidad Distrital de Machupicchu, continuará los trabajos de rehabilitación de los puntos afectados en la carretera Hiram Bingham en los horarios de 5:30 a.m hasta 9:30 a.m; por lo que, se restringirá el servicio de buses de turismo a partir del día de miércoles 15 de enero del presente año; hasta, nuevo aviso en los horarios de rehabilitación.

2- El horario de acceso mediante buses de Turismo será a partir de las 9:30 a.m.

3- Estandarizar, una frecuencia de radio comunicación entre los organismos siguientes: SERNANP, CONSETTUR, Ministerio de Cultura, Municipalidad Distrital de Machupicchu y la Policía Nacional del Perú, con la finalidad de consolidar el sistema de alerta temprana.

4- CONSETTUR, deberá elaborar el expediente técnico para la obra de rehabilitación y prevención de riesgos.

5- Priorizar la limpieza y ejecución de obras en la parte superior de origen del deslizamiento.

6- Coordinar y determinar con PeruRail un nuevo horario de salidas con un retraso de dos horas, para facilitar la visita de turistas.

7- Coordinar y determinar con el Ministerio de Cultura, la ampliación del horario de atención a los turistas y visitantes en 30 minutos adicionales al horario normal de visita al S.H.M., así como el ingreso de los turistas a Huaynapicchu en tres horas adicionales.

Culminada la reunión del COE, el presidente de dicho comité, señaló que continuará realizando las coordinaciones a nivel nacional y regional para lograr el restablecimiento oportuno pensando en la seguridad de las personas que visitan el Santuario Inca de Machupicchu, por lo que; invoca a los visitantes y operadores de turismo tomar en cuenta lo señalado por el presente comunicado.

MUNICIPALIDAD DISTRITAL DE MACHUPICCHU
MINISTERIO DE CULTURA
CONSETTUR
SERNANP
POLICIA NACIONAL DEL PERU
UNSAAC
DEFENSA CIVIL
FRENTE DE DEFENSA
GUIAS DE TURISMO.

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