Brazilian trunk roads

Heraldic shield of a federal highway

Heraldic shield of a state road (here in São Paulo )

The Brazilian highways ( port. : Rodovias ) are divided into Brazilian federal state borders across highways ( rodovias federais ) and the highways of the states ( rodovias estaduais ).

Federal highways

BR116 with height-free connection point

Their designation begins with the initials BR , followed by a three-digit number. The representation in maps and in traffic signs usually takes the form of a heraldic shield . Federal roads are, depending on the requirements, built like a motorway with median strips and junctions with no elevation or as a highway . Not all routes are paved.

Name plate of a federal road

BR101 in rural Alagoas

In 2011, the total length of the federal highways was 61,961 km, which corresponds to around 7% of the entire Brazilian road network.

The Polícia Rodoviária Federal (PRF) is responsible for the fight against crime, traffic control and safety on the federal highways.

numbering

Notice boards BR-230

BR-230, the transverse Brazilian federal highway

Rodovia BR-101 in Santa Catarina , turning lane

The federal highways and their numbering are numbered according to their geographical course:

Radial federal highways

Radial federal highways ( Portuguese : Rodovia Radiais ) begin in Brasília and run radially over the Brazilian federal territory. Their numerical identification begins with a zero (0) and the following two-digit numbering ranges from 05 to 95 and increases in a clockwise direction, with only multiples of ten (10) being used up to now. The BR-010 runs north and the BR-070 runs west.
The kilometering begins on the Anel Viário de Brasília ring road ( DF-001 ) in Brasília.

Longitudinal federal roads

Longitudinal federal roads (Portuguese: Rodovia Longitudinais ) run in a north-south direction and begin with the number one (1). The BR-101 runs along the Brazilian Atlantic coast from north to south. The BR-158 runs in the same direction inland. The kilometering begins in the south.

Transversal federal highways

Transversal federal highways (Portuguese: Rodovia Transversais ) run in an east-west direction and begin with the number 2.
For example the Transamazônica with the designation BR-230

Diagonal federal highways

Diagonal federal highways ( Portuguese : Rodovia Diagonais ) run in northeast-southwest ( NE -SW) or northwest-southeast (NW-SE) direction and begin with the number three (3). Northwest-facing federal highways end with an odd number, NW-SE running with an even number.

Connecting federal highways

Connection resp. connecting federal roads ( Portuguese : Rodovia de Ligação ) begin with a 4 and mark a federal road which connects two of the federal roads above.

Kilometrage

The kilometer count starts again at zero when you cross a state line. This is another reason why the two-digit ISO code of the state is appended to the official name of a federal highway. BR-070- MT is the name of the federal road section in Mato Grosso .