Route 68 submits environmental impact study for its 19 urban kilometers

The Environmental Evaluation Service (SEA) of the Metropolitan Region published this Friday the summary of the Environmental Impact Study (EIA) for the project “Improvement of Route 68: Santiago - Lo Prado Toll”, submitted to the Environmental Impact Evaluation System on November 6, 2026. The publication was made in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Chile, no. 44,598, Section I, pages 1 to 4, via CVE 2901615, with letter No. 2026130033 from the agency. This procedure opens the period during which the community may submit observations regarding the study.

Who is presenting and what is being built

The owner is Sociedad Concesionaria Ruta 68 a la Costa S.A., represented by José Ricardo González Concha. The project is located in the urban section of Route 68, with an approximate extension of 19 kilometers between the Pajaritos sector and the Lo Prado Toll sector, in the communes of Estación Central, Lo Prado, and Pudahuel, Metropolitan Region of Santiago.

According to the summary, the objective is to increase the capacity and improve the service level of the existing infrastructure, without opening a new route. The main works are:

• Rectification of the existing roadway and incorporation of third and fourth lanes.
• Undergrounding of sections of the route through trenches, including a section of the Pajaritos Node.
• Replacement of the bridges over the Mapocho river and the Colina stream.
• Construction and rehabilitation of links, crossings, and overpasses.
• Construction and replacement of pedestrian bridges, plazas, and bus stops; improvement of service roads, bike lanes, sidewalks, and sanitation and drainage systems.
• Permanent acoustic barriers and an Orbital Toll Plaza.
• A Wetland Park and Interpretation Center in the Mapocho river sector and 30,000 m² of park areas of the Lo Prado Intercommunal Park.

Temporary works will cover approximately 38.30 hectares and permanent works 143.12 hectares. The estimated investment is US$570,000,000, with a construction phase of 48 months and an indefinite useful life.

Wetland, Chilean rose spider, and resettlements

The project is submitted to the SEIA under the typology of literal e.8) of article 3 of the Regulations of the Environmental Impact Evaluation System (DS No. 40/2012 of the Ministry of the Environment), as the primary typology, as it involves a public road that may affect protected areas due to works in the Mapocho River Urban Wetland and the Colina stream. Literals e.7), p), and s) of the same article also apply, in accordance with article 10 of Law No. 19,300.

The EIA identifies significant impacts in two literals of article 11 of Law No. 19,300. Regarding natural resources (literal b), the loss of individuals of Grammostola rosea (Chilean rose spider), classified as Vulnerable. Regarding the human environment (literal c), all during the construction phase:

• IMH-01: resettlement of human groups due to expropriation of housing, land, or associated infrastructure.
• IMH-02: modification of productive and commercial patterns of the displaced population.
• IMH-03: alteration of social cohesion and rootedness due to the loss or disruption of social networks.
• IMH-12: impact on rootedness due to the loss of the Estación Central Urban Forest.

To this end, the proponent proposes mitigation measure MT-01, for the rescue and relocation of araña pollito (Chilean trapdoor spider) specimens, and seventeen compensation measures (MC-01 to MC-17), including housing subsidy application programs, temporary rental, psychosocial support, restart of commercial activity, legal assistance, and restoration of the Estación Central Urban Forest.

How to participate and applicable deadlines

The EIA will be available on the SEA website and at public service offices: the SEA of the Metropolitan Region (Miraflores N° 178, 3rd floor, Santiago), the Metropolitan Regional Government (Bandera N° 46), and the municipalities of Estación Central (Av. Libertador Bernardo O’Higgins N° 3920), Lo Prado (Av. San Pablo N° 5959), and Pudahuel (Av. San Pablo N° 8444).

Natural and legal persons may submit observations for a period of 60 business days, counted from the business day following the last publication of the summary, through the SEA Citizen Portal, the Virtual Filing Office, or the regional office. Observations must include environmental grounds, full name, RUN (national ID), and address or email.

The SEA kept the proponent’s sensitive information confidential, via exempt resolution No. 202613101558, dated October 28, 2026, within the framework of article 22 of the regulation and Law No. 19,628. The summary was approved by the Evaluation Commission of the Metropolitan Region and does not constitute a ruling on the environmental qualification of the project. The letter was signed by Jorge Ignacio Grez Morales, acting regional director of the Metropolitan SEA.

The publication is important because it starts the clock for citizen participation on one of the main arteries toward the coast and because it exposes, for the first time in the official bulletin, the details of the expropriations and works that will affect residents of three communes in the western sector of Santiago.

Source: Official Gazette of the Republic of Chile, no. 44,598, November 13, 2026, Section I, pp. 1-4 (official reference: CVE 2901615).