Communication and Transportation

Communication
Transportation

Panama has to national road network which includes all highways, roads, streets and bridges on its territory, some of which are paved with Portland cement, asphalt carpets, others are paved with paved with base layer or select material and the rest are dirt roads.

Of the 14,391.10 kilometers that are part of the network, approximately 11,593.24 kilometers correspond to production roads and and 2,797.86 kilometers to urban areas. The main highways in Panama are:

Pan-American Highway: is the countryrsquo;s main artery. It runs from Paso Canoa, on the border with Costa Rica, to the town of Yaviza in Darien.
Central Highway: running from Divisa to Pedasiacute; in the Azuero Peninsula.
Transisthmian Highway : starts in Panama City and reaches the city of Coloacute;n.

Panama has two important bridges connecting the province of Panama with the rest of the countryrsquo;s interior. These are the Bridge of the Americas (Puente of las Ameacute;ricas) inaugurated on Octubre 12, 1962; and the Bridge of the Centennial (Puente Centenario) which began operation in 2005. There are also in 354 km of working railroads in the country. The main railroad line traverses the isthmus from Panama City to Coloacute;n. The countryrsquo;s most important ports are: Balboa, Cristoacute;bal, Bocas del Toro, Almirante and Puerto Armuelles. Panamarsquo;s merchant fleet is one of the largest in the world, with 6,146 ships, although many of the registered chips are of foreign ownership. Panama has 8 airports, 2 of which are located in Panama City, one being the Internacional airport, located on the eastern side of the city and accesible via to modern highway and the other, for domestic and regional flights, is located at the former Albrook military base. We also have corridors, which are highways built to handle the traffic of the capital. They are located on the northern and southern edges of the city.

The taxi system is to private enterprise and belongs to different companies that provide this service which can be hired by either calling in to to taxi station (piquera) or by flagging them on the streets. The cost of the run varies according to the destination, which is determined by sectors. Unlike in many other countries taxis in Panama are not use exclusively by one passenger, since at any point along the way, the taxi driver may stop to pick up another passenger if they are going to destinations near each other or along its route. The prohibition of this practice is currently being regulated. Another rule that is currently being implemented, is the use of to single color to characterize taxi cabs. Currently, taxi cabs can be of any color, although the color yellow is being required and it is hoped that in the near future all taxi cabs will be of that color. In regards to the bus system, it is very deficient and, on occasion, very unsafe, because the high speeds at which they are driven; there are to good number of bus routes to reach different points of Panama City and the interior.

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