Ecuador has a total of 43,200 km of roads. The State Road Network (Red Vial Estatal) is made up of primary and secondary roads. The set of primary and secondary roads are the main roads that register the highest vehicular traffic, interconnects the provincial capitals, canton capitals, international border ports with or without customs and large and medium centers of economic activity. The total length of the State Road Network (including primary and secondary roads) is approximately 10,300 km of road.
Ecuador Road Inventory (kms) |
|||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Coast |
Highlands |
Amazon |
Islands |
Total |
Paved |
4,040 |
3,628 |
478 |
15 |
8,161 |
Gravel |
6,665 |
12,405 |
3,816 |
169 |
23,055 |
Dirt |
5,787 |
6,020 |
177 |
0 |
11,984 |
Total |
16,492 |
22,053 |
4,471 |
184 |
43,200 |
Distance Matrix
Distances from Capital City to Major Towns (km) |
|||||||||||
|
Quito |
Ambato |
Cuenca |
Guayaquil |
Manta |
Tulcán |
Esmeraldas |
||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Quito |
|
111 |
432 |
390 |
362 |
239 |
300 |
||||
Ambato |
111 |
|
321 |
277 |
358 |
381 |
371 |
||||
Cuenca |
432 |
321 |
|
191 |
392 |
702 |
654 |
||||
Guayaquil |
390 |
277 |
191 |
|
180 |
659 |
447 |
||||
Loja |
640 |
529 |
207 |
398 |
597 |
909 |
861 |
||||
Manta |
362 |
358 |
392 |
180 |
|
631 |
371 |
||||
Tulcán |
239 |
381 |
702 |
659 |
631 |
|
395 |
||||
Esmeraldas |
300 |
371 |
654 |
502 |
371 |
395 |
|
||||
Travel Time from Capital City to Major Towns |
|||||||||||
|
Quito |
Ambato |
Cuenca |
Guayaquil |
Manta |
Tulcán |
Esmeraldas |
||||
Quito |
|
02h23 |
07h41 |
07h22 |
06h44 |
04h24 |
05h14 |
||||
Ambato |
02h23 |
|
04h13 |
05h08 |
04h57 |
04h50 |
05h07 |
||||
Cuenca |
07h41 |
04h13 |
|
03h28 |
5h19 |
11h22 |
08h22 |
||||
Guayaquil |
07h22 |
05h08 |
03h28 |
|
03h17 |
07h55 |
07h28 |
||||
Loja |
10h58 |
07h40 |
03h30 |
05h41 |
08h14 |
11h11 |
12h11 |
||||
Manta |
06h44 |
04h57 |
5h19 |
03h17 |
|
08h22 |
05h21 |
||||
Tulcán |
04h24 |
07h55 |
11h22 |
07h55 |
08h22 |
|
05h43 |
||||
Esmeraldas |
05h14 |
05h07 |
08h22 |
07h28 |
05h21 |
05h43 |
|
Road Security
Although some of Ecuador’s roads and highways have greatly improved in recent years, road travel throughout Ecuador can still be dangerous, especially at night. Rural roads are often unpaved, generally in poor condition or affected by heavy rains and mudslides. Mountain roads may lack safety features such as crash barriers or guard rails, and conditions are frequently made more treacherous by heavy fog. Highways are often unmarked and unlit, and do not have signs indicating destinations. In addition, slow-moving buses and trucks frequently stop in the middle of the road unexpectedly. In the countryside, livestock is often herded along roads or grazes on roadsides. Lacking sidewalks, many roads are also used by pedestrians. Driving in Ecuador can be a confusing experience for foreigners used to drive in Europe or the United States. In provincial areas, traffic laws are rarely enforced, and drivers tend to ignore posted signs and lights. However, the road systems in major cities are usually orderly and well planned, although fraught with traffic congestion.
Weighbridges and Axle Load Limits
There are currently no operational weighbridges in Ecuador.
Axle Load Limits |
Ecuador |
Colombia |
Perú |
---|---|---|---|
Truck with 2 Axles |
18 MT |
18 MT |
18 MT |
Truck with 3 Axles |
27 MT |
27 MT |
27 MT |
Truck with 4 Axles |
32 MT |
32 MT |
32 MT |
Semi-trailer with 3 Axles |
27 MT |
27 MT |
27 MT |
Semi-trailer with 4 Axles |
31 MT |
31 MT |
31 MT |
Semi-trailer with 5 Axles |
47 MT |
47 MT |
47 MT |
Semi-trailer with 6 Axles |
48 MT |
48 MT |
48 MT |
Truck & Drawbar Trailer with 4 Axles |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
Truck & Drawbar Trailer with 5 Axles |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
Truck & Drawbar Trailer with 6 Axles |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
Truck & Drawbar Trailer with 7 Axles |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
Road Class and Surface Conditions
Ecuador – Road Classification |
|
Classification |
Road Description |
---|---|
Class A |
Primary Roads: International trunk roads linking international boundaries, international ports or provincial capitals |
Class B |
Secondary Roads: Recollection of traffic from rural or urban area and linking it to the Primary Roads |
Class C |
Tertiary Roads and local tracks: They connect Parishes and production areas to the National Road Network |
Source: Arqº María de los Angeles Duarte, Ministerio de transportes y Obras Públicas
An important route, the Pan-American highway, crosses the country from North to South from Tulcán (in the border with Colombia) to Macará (in the border with Peru), completing a route of 1,397 kilometers throughout the Andean mountains; it is the main artery of communication in the country, as well as with the neighboring countries. Since 2008, GoE directed its effort on road maintenance. In addition to this action, the administration and maintenance of the main roads are currently concessioned to private companies, resulting in a very good condition of primary roads throughout the country.
North-South route Bogotá - Quito - Lima
The Ecuadorian section is asphalted and has sections on rigid pavement, having the character of a toll highway in some sections, having from two lanes in each direction, with the usual sections having three lanes in each direction from the border with Colombia to Otavalo, and up to five at the entrance to the Metropolitan District of Quito from the north; Between the Quito and Riobamba routes there are three lanes in each direction, as well as from the border between the Cañar and Azuay provinces to the south of Cuenca, between the Azogues and Cuenca routes.
The Pan-American Highway is not a single great work or megaproject in the style of the Trans-Siberian railway, but a multitude of roads from different countries and characteristics connected to each other. However, almost a century after its conception, it is almost complete, and extends from the state of Alaska (United States) in North America to the city of Quellon, Chiloe (Chile) in South America, passing through the cities of Mexico City. (Mexico), Guatemala City (Guatemala), San Salvador (El Salvador), Cali (Colombia), Quito (Ecuador), Lima (Peru) and Los Andes (Chile) originally.