Carretera Central (Puerto Rico)
Carretera Central | |
|---|---|
| Central Highway | |
| Carretera Militar Military Highway | |
| Route information | |
| Maintained by Puerto Rico DTPW | |
| Length | 134 km: 7 (83 mi) |
| Existed | 1898–present |
| Component highways |
|
| Major junctions | |
| South end | Avenida Eugenio María de Hostos in Playa |
| |
| North end | La Fortaleza in San Juan Antiguo |
| Location | |
| Country | United States |
| Territory | Puerto Rico |
| Municipalities | Ponce, Juana Díaz, Coamo, Aibonito, Cayey, Cidra, Caguas, Guaynabo, San Juan |
| Highway system | |
Carretera Central | |
| Location | Highway 14 from Cayey boundary to Coamo boundary |
| Coordinates | 18°08′27″N 66°15′34″W / 18.140756°N 66.259532°W |
| Built | 1846–1886 |
| Built by | The Spanish administration |
| Engineer | Raimundo Camprubí, Enrique Gadea, Manuel Maese, Manuel López de Bayo Timoteo Luberza |
| NRHP reference No. | 100003686 |
| Added to NRHP | May 2, 2019 |
The Carretera Central is a historic north–south central highway in Puerto Rico, linking the cities of San Juan and Ponce by way of Río Piedras, Caguas, Cayey, Aibonito, Coamo, and Juana Díaz. It crosses the Cordillera Central. Plans for the road started in the first half of the 19th century, and the road was fully completed in 1898.: 7 At the time the United States took possession of Puerto Rico in 1898, the Americans called it "the finest road in the Western Hemisphere."
A portion of the Carretera Central from partway through Caguas to the end of Juana Díaz was listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 2019.