Chile Route 68 (Ruta 68) is a

highway A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It is used for major roads, but also includes other public roads and public tracks. In some areas of the United States, it is used as an equivalent term to controlled-acces ...

in central

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

. It runs from

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, whos ...

Valparaíso Valparaíso (; ) is a major city, seaport, naval base, and educational centre in the commune of Valparaíso, Chile. "Greater Valparaíso" is the second largest metropolitan area in the country. Valparaíso is located about northwest of Santiago ...

Route description

It begins at the western terminus of

Avenida Libertador General Bernardo O'Higgins Avenida Libertador General Bernardo O'Higgins ( en, General Liberator Bernardo O'Higgins Avenue), popularly known as La Alameda (meaning, a street bordered by poplar trees), is the main avenue of Santiago, Chile. It runs east-west in the center o ...

. In its first kilometers the highway is straight and has three lanes in each direction. Shortly after its junction with Vespucio Norte Express, Route 68 narrows to two lanes in each direction. After this, the highway meets Costanera Norte and crosses the

Mapocho River The River Mapocho ( es, Río Mapocho) ( Mapudungun: ''Mapu chuco'', "water that penetrates the land") is a river in Chile. It flows from its source in the Andes mountains onto the west and divides Chile's capital Santiago in two. Course The Mapo ...

. After some kilometers, Route 68 passes through the tunnels Lo Prado I and Lo Prado II, with lengths of and respectively, which are built through the

Chilean Coastal Range The Chilean Coastal Range ( es, Cordillera de la Costa) is a mountain range that runs from north to south along the Pacific coast of South America parallel to the Andean Mountains, extending from Morro de Arica in the north to Taitao Peninsula, ...

. Going westward, Route 68 descends into the Curacaví Valley and bypasses the small city of the same name. After this, the highway is carried by another pair of tunnels side by side, which straddle the border between

Santiago Metropolitan Region Santiago Metropolitan Region ( es, link=no, Región Metropolitana de Santiago) is one of Chile's 16 first-order administrative divisions. It is the country's only landlocked administrative region and contains the nation's capital, Santiago. Mos ...

and

Valparaíso Region The Valparaíso Region ( es, Región de Valparaíso, links=no, ) is one of Chile's 16 first order administrative divisions.Valparaíso Region, 2006 With the country's second-highest population of 1,790,219 , and fourth-smallest area of , ...

and are called Zapata I and Zapata II. After leaving the tunnels, the highway continues northwest through the Casablanca Valley and borders the city of Casablanca. The highway enters the Lago Peñuelas National Reserve before continuing into Placilla de Peñuelas. Just north of Placilla, Route 68 intersects with the Acceso Sur a Valparaíso, formerly known as Camino La Pólvora, which is the new access road to the port the Valparaíso. From there the highway curves towards the north and splits into a Y-junction. The eastern road is named Variante Agua Santa and serves as access to the city of Viña del Mar. From this road branches off Route Las Palmas, which is part of Chile Route 60. The final stretch of Route 68, named Santos Ossa, makes a steep descent into Valparaíso.

References

Roads in Chile Transport in Santiago Metropolitan Region Transport in Valparaíso Region {{chile-road-stub