Caguas is a city and municipality in central eastern Puerto Rico. Located in the eponymous Caguas Valley between the Sierra de Cayey and Sierra de Luquillo of the Central Mountain Range, it is bordered by San Juan and Trujillo Alto to the north, Gurabo and San Lorenzo to the west, Aguas Buenas, Cidra and Cayey to the east, and Patillas to the south. With a population of 127,244 as of the 2020 census, Caguas is the fifth most populated municipality in the archipelago and island and a principal city of the San Juan metropolitan area.
Cayey, officially Cayey de Muesas, is a mountain town and municipality in central Puerto Rico located on the Sierra de Cayey within the Central Mountain range, north of Salinas and Guayama; south of Cidra and Caguas; east of Aibonito and Salinas; and west of San Lorenzo. Cayey is spread over 21 barrios plus Cayey Pueblo. It is part of the San Juan-Caguas-Guaynabo Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Coamo is a town and municipality founded in 1579 in the south-central region of Puerto Rico, located north of Santa Isabel; south of Orocovis and Barranquitas; east of Villalba and Juana Díaz; and west of Aibonito and Salinas. The municipality of Coamo is spread over 10 barrios and Coamo Pueblo – the town or downtown area and administrative center of the city. The Coamo municipality is also a Micropolitan Statistical Area and as such is part of the Ponce-Yauco-Coamo Combined Statistical Area.
Añasco, named after one of its settlers, Don Luis de Añasco, is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico located on the west coast of the island bordering the Mona Passage to the west, north of Mayagüez, and Las Marias; south of Rincón, Aguada, and Moca and west of San Sebastián and Las Marias. It is part of the Aguadilla-Isabela-San Sebastián Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Cidra is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the central region of the island, north of Cayey; south of Comerío and Aguas Buenas; east of Aibonito and Barranquitas; and west of Caguas. Cidra is spread over 12 barrios and Cidra Pueblo. It is part of the San Juan-Caguas-Guaynabo Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Puerto Rico Highway 52 (PR-52), a major toll road in Puerto Rico, is also known as Autopista Luis A. Ferré. It was formerly called Expreso Las Américas. It runs from PR-1 in southwest Río Piedras and heads south until it intersects with highway PR-2 in Ponce. At its north end, the short PR-18 continues north from PR-52 towards San Juan. This short segment is known as Expreso Las Américas, the only segment of the route still unofficially bearing this name, since PR-18 is officially named Roberto Sánchez Vilella Expressway. The combined route of PR-18 and PR-52 runs concurrent with the unsigned Interstate Highway PRI-1. Toll stations are located in San Juan, Caguas, Salinas, Juana Díaz, and Ponce.
The Cordillera Central is the only mountain range in the main island of Puerto Rico, consisting of three subranges: the western-central Cordillera Central, the southeastern Sierra de Cayey, and the northeastern Sierra de Luquillo. Bordered by the Northern Karst Belt to the northwest and costal plains to the north and south, the numerous ridges and foothills of the three subranges combined extend throughout the island. Concentrated in the western to central region of the island, the eponymous main subrange of Cordillera Central originates in the municipality of Mayagüez and merges with the Sierra de Cayey subrange on the town boundary between the municipalities of Barranquitas and Aibonito. At 1,338 meters on the town line between Ponce and Jayuya, Cerro de Punta is the summit of the Cordillera Central and the highest point in Puerto Rico.
Puerto Rico Highway 1 (PR-1) is a highway in Puerto Rico that connects the city of Ponce to San Juan. Leaving Ponce, the road heads east and follows a somewhat parallel route along the southern coast of the island heading towards Salinas. At Salinas, the road turns north to cut through the Cordillera Central in its approach to San Juan. Before reaching San Juan, it climbs to make its way to the mountain town of Cayey and then it winds down into the city of Caguas on its final approach to San Juan.
Puerto Rico Highway 15 (PR-15), formerly Road No. 4, is a main highway connecting the municipalities of Guayama and Cayey in Puerto Rico. With a length of 25.80 km (16.03 mi), it extends from PR-3 in downtown Guayama to PR-14 in downtown Cayey.
The San Juan–Bayamón–Caguas metropolitan area, most commonly known as the San Juan metropolitan area, is the largest and most populous metropolitan statistical area (MSA) in Puerto Rico, concentrated in the capital municipality of San Juan and surrounding municipalities, including Bayamón, Caguas, and Carolina, on the northeastern coastal plain of the main island. One of 6 metropolitan statistical areas in Puerto Rico, it lies within the San Juan–Bayamón combined statistical area (CSA), which is one of 3 primary statistical areas in the main island as defined by the United States Census Bureau. As of 2023, census estimates place the population of the San Juan–Bayamón–Caguas metropolitan area at 2,035,733.
This is a list of properties and districts in the southern municipalities of Puerto Rico that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It includes places along the southern coast of the island, and on the south slope of Puerto Rico's Cordillera Central.
The Arenas Bridge is a truss bridge built in 1894 between the municipalities of Cayey and Cidra in Puerto Rico. Also known as Puente Rio La Plata, it was the longest bridge constructed in Puerto Rico during the Spanish colonial period. It crosses the Rio de la Plata, the longest river in Puerto Rico. According to the U.S. National Park Service, "[t]his is the most important metal bridge in Puerto Rico from the period." The bridge is still standing.
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. At the time the United States took possession of Puerto Rico in 1898, the Americans called it "the finest road in the Western Hemisphere."
This portion of National Register of Historic Places listings in Puerto Rico is along the central mountain region, from Las Marías and Maricao in the central-west to Juncos in the central-east, including the slopes of the Cordillera.
Porta Cordillera, or simply Central Region, is a land-locked tourism region located in the central mountainous area of Puerto Rico. Porta Cordillera was officially launched in July 2012 by the Puerto Rico Tourism Company. It consists of 16 municipalities: Aguas Buenas, Cidra, Cayey, Comerío, Aibonito, Naranjito, Barranquitas, Corozal, Orocovis, Morovis, Ciales, Jayuya, Florida, Utuado, Adjuntas and Lares.
The La Liendre Bridge, spanning Beatriz Creek, a tributary to the Río de la Plata, between Cayey, Puerto Rico and Cidra, Puerto Rico. It was built in 1877 and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1995, and on the Puerto Rico Register of Historic Sites and Zones in 2000.
Cidra is a barrio in the municipality of Añasco, Puerto Rico. Its population in 2010 was 326.
Puerto Rico Highway 735 (PR-735) is a rural road located between the municipalities of Cayey and Cidra, Puerto Rico, and it corresponds to an original segment of the historic Carretera Central. The Arenas and La Liendre old bridges are located on this route.
Puerto Rico has approximately 14,400 kilometers (8,900 mi) of national, forest and municipal roads. The highways serve the more than 3 million residents, and 3-4 million tourists who visit each year.
