Pilot project to start soon

BARBADIANS will soon be seeing the beginning of a major road enhancement project.

Project Manager in the Ministry of Transport and Works, Dave Scantlebury, told members of the media during a town hall meeting at the St. Peter-based Alexandra School, on Tuesday, that the pilot project for the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Road Rehabilitation and Improving Connectivity of Road Infrastructure project is set to start in May.

“Right now we are selecting the supervising consultant, as well as we are going to be dealing with the legal part of bringing on contractors to work,” Scantlebury said.

At the town hall meeting, residents and business owners located along the Charles Duncan O’Neal Highway were given a better insight into the Ministry’s road rehabilitation plans, in conjunction with the IDB.

The main objective of the Road Rehabilitation and Improving Connectivity of Road Infrastructure project is to improve the quality of road infrastructure and its connectivity, in order to inter alia enhance Barbados’ tourism competitiveness and growth. Specifically, the programme aims to rehabilitate sections of road networks and lower logistic costs, particularly transportation costs and travel times, and improve safety.

It also aims to provide a framework for institutional strengthening to improve transport sector planning capacity, road investment’s sustainability and financial mechanisms for rehabilitation and regular maintenance interventions undertaken by the MTW.

“The project cost is US$25 million, the civil works is US$21.5. The Civil Works is broken into two packages, one we call the sample project, and the next we call global. The roads are the Charles Duncan O’Neal Highway, starting in Checker Hall going to St. Lucy’s Church, passing through Portland and Farley Hill, straight to the bottom at Greenland.

“Then we have two other roads in the Pilot, and that would be ABC Highway from the bottom of University Hill which is the Frank Worrell Roundabout, through Hinds Hill to West Road. The second one is the west bound lanes of the ABC Highway, between the Norman Niles Roundabout and the Clyde Walcott Roundabout. As you are aware, that road is getting potholes now and we are trying to do patching every now and then, but it is coming out in pot holes,” he said.

Some of those who attended the meeting, were interested to know about the long-term care of the roads included in the project. (AH)