RS: reconstruction of federal highways will cost more than R$1 billion

The Minister of Transport, Renan Filho, reported this Monday (6) that the reconstruction of the sections of federal highways destroyed by the rains of recent days in Rio Grande do Sul alone is expected to cost more than R$1 billion.

“The ministry’s work to reestablish the functioning of BRs and their respective constructions will probably exceed R$ 1 billion”, said the minister, during a meeting between federal and state deputies from Rio Grande do Sul and members of the federal government team, at this morning (6) at the Legislative Assembly of Rio Grande do Sul.

According to Renan Filho, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva will issue a provisional measure (MP) granting extraordinary budget credit to allocate federal financial resources to cover expenses resulting from the climate catastrophe.

According to Renan Filho, this will be the first time that the Ministry of Transport will need emergency resources from the Union to cover expenses not foreseen in the department’s budget. “As the ministry has a robust budget, when there was a problem [emergencial] on the highways [federais], we met the needs ourselves.” The minister informed that, for this year, the forecast was to invest R$1.7 billion of its own budget in Rio Grande do Sul. Such resources are being applied to “short-term needs”, which, according to Renan Filho, will be restored with the provisional measure.

“We will need decisive help from the state bench, deputies and senators”, added the minister, referring both to the importance of parliamentary amendments that allocate resources to restoration works on the federal road infrastructure in Rio Grande do Sul, and to the approval of legal measures that accelerate the transfer of money to the state and relax the rules that deal with public spending.

“Even with a volume of investments [recursos] considerable for the state, we would not be able to carry out all the works already in progress and [simultaneamente] restore the functioning of federal highways”, stated the minister, guaranteeing that some blocked sections of highways such as BR-386 and BR-290 should begin to be released from the 10th or 12th, facilitating the rescue of people and supply. of cities.

“This type of intervention is assistance, to guarantee the supply of cities and the rescue of people. This is what we are calling assistance paths”, explained the Minister of Transport.