RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Closed since May last year by court order, Niemeyer Avenue, which connects Leblon to São Conrado, in the south zone of Rio, was reopened on Saturday morning, March 7th, following authorization by the Superior Court of Justice (STJ).
The reopening was attended by Mayor Marcelo Crivella, who on Friday celebrated the decision on video.
“It was important for Rio de Janeiro. We have already finished the work, this road has been closed for a year, about 40,000 people who were blocking the tunnel, now pass here every day. I’m sure Rio de Janeiro’s citizens will be happy. It is important to say that we spent more than R$30 million on these works. Today, Niemeyer is one of the safest places in Rio de Janeiro. Of course, it may have a problem eventually, but not at the level we had a year ago,” said the mayor.
The road was closed at the request of the Prosecutor’s Office after landslides on the Dois Irmãos hill in the first half of the year. In February 2019, two people died when a landslide struck a bus. In May, another landslide closed the avenue and damaged a house, but no one was hurt. Last week, a small boulder rolled down the Niemeyer slope but was caught by a safety net.
According to Crivella, the STJ’s ruling establishes an important judicial precedent for the city, because the court states that there was undue interference in a matter of city jurisdiction. “It is important to say that because nobody understands Niemeyer more than the Geo-Rio experts, who are here every day and not only here, but on all of the city’s slopes. On a sunny day with blue skies it will not collapse,” said Crivella.
According to Rio’s city hall, over R$34 (US$8.5) million were invested in 56 interventions along Niemeyer Avenue. The Municipal Department of Infrastructure and Housing (SMIH) says the interventions ensure the safety of the road for vehicles, pedestrians and residents.
However, Niemeyer will be closed in the event of rainfall of 38 millimeters in an hour, with winds of up to 70 kilometers per hour. According to calculations by the municipal government, before being closed, 36,000 vehicles a day traveled along the avenue.
The closing of Niemeyer Avenue has triggered a legal battle between the Prosecutor’s office and the city. The most controversial incident happened in October, when Crivella ironically criticized Judge Mirela Erbisti of the 3rd Public Finance Court, who ordered the closure of Niemeyer, saying that she “is so beautiful that she stops traffic”.
“The judge is about 40 years old and she is very beautiful, she is so beautiful that she stops traffic, but she doesn’t need to practice it,” he said.
The mayor further commented. “The judge who closed Niemeyer is a woman called Mirela, she has a website called ‘Togadas e tatuadas’ (‘Robes and Tattoos’), she teaches women how to dress, how to get a boyfriend, it’s an interesting thing,” he continued. The chauvinist statements elicited angry reactions from magistrate organizations.