84 The object of understandable and constant concern in any country, adequate, efficient, and modern cargo transport infrastructure can be said to be even more vital in huge countries, such as Brazil, with vast distances between production regions and domestic consumer hubs, ports, and airports. Increased cargo transport is both the result and driver of economic growth, and the interplay involved here has been better recognized by the government in recent years. Proof lies in recent and planned investment in the sector, which includes improvements to and expansion of the road, rail, and port network, guided by the new Growth Acceleration Program (GAP). The program involves highway concessions, announced in January, which could inject R$ 161 billion into highways in the short term. There will be 15 projects put out to tender by the end of this year, focused on about 8,500 kilometers of highways. The Ministry of Transport says the concessions will range in duration from 25 to 30 years, during which the concession holders will be responsible for highway management, maintenance, and investment. The program includes 12 new concession projects and three optimizations of existing contracts. Two of particular note are for the BR-116 highway between Bahia and Pernambuco states, essential for cargo and passenger transport in the Northeast of Brazil, and sections of the Integrated Highways in Paraná, a state that is strong in agriculture. Back on track - The GAP also stipulates a broad set of measures to improve and expand the railroad system. With the National Railroad Plan, announced in January, about R$ 100 billion should be invested in the coming years in almost 5,000 kilometers of railroads. There are a few dozen projects, some less complex with completion set for this year. The list includes, for example, Ferrogrão, planned to connect grain-producing areas in the Center-West to the Port of Miritituba, in Pará state. A priority, Ferrogrão is still being structured, with the search for public-private partnerships for the execution of the work, in an investment of around R$ 8.4 billion. The government continues work on Transnordestina, which resumed in 2023, after repeated delays in a project that was supposed to be completed in 2010. It should be completed in 2029 – with a phase two years before that – and it will connect municipalities in Piauí state to the ports of Pecém (Ceara state) and Suape (Pernambuco state), making the Northeast a major exporter of agricultural and mineral production. A cycle that needs to get going Strategic highway, railroad, and port programs have the potential to make cargo transport more efficient in the coming years INFRAESTRUTURA | INFRASTRUCTURE | INFRAESTRICTURA
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