Dominican Republic Subway Project Sparks Debate

"As of now, the subway is a hole in the ground, a mountain of concrete, a stretch of tunnels where workers are racing to meet President Leonel Fernández's construction deadline of early next year, in time for the presidential election in May in which he hopes to win a new term."

"Only the second underground rail system in the Caribbean - the first is in San Juan, Puerto Rico - the Santo Domingo project is, to some, a colossal exercise in bad judgment, a white elephant on rails. To others, though, it is a forward-thinking solution to the capital's serious traffic congestion."

"Santo Domingo, with a population of 2 million and growing, is bursting at the seams. Its roadways are clogged with buses, private cars, bicycles and rundown taxis, where passengers sit cheek-by-jowl with strangers. Add the occasional horse cart for a snarling, slow-moving mess."