ROAD repairs and maintenance continue to pose a major problem for the authorities, despite efforts to bring the matter under control.
And while repair crews are busily involved in paving and fixing several of the major roadways and by-ways on the island, there is still much work to be done to rectify the situation.
Albeit, priority is given to primary selected locations for the road works and repairs to be undertaken to bring some level of parity to bus drivers, motorists, and commuters along these busy routes.
For instance, much has been stated publicly about the road works currently taking place along the Millennium Highway – and the government has declared in no uncertain terms that the works must be expedited. The prime minister and in turn the infrastructure minister have both strongly expressed their concerns with the works in progress and have called on the contractor and his crew to move more speedily and efficiently to complete this long-overdue project.
The contractors have cited intermittent weather conditions as part of the delays and have stated their commitment to speeding up the works.
However, in all these happenings recently, notably, there is a major road project that might appear to have been abandoned or put on hold, while the authorities determine the next course of action to be undertaken.
But what is the current status of the Rodney Bay road project and when will it resume?
The Rodney Bay road project was undertaken by the last administration, but over the past two years and more with a new government at the reins, the project appears to be at a stalemate with very little or absolutely nothing being done to sensitize the public – road users and pedestrians about the state of affairs in that location.
Meanwhile, as the authorities deal with their intentions to resume the project, people view this undertaking as something needed for the prime location where it is taking place.
Undoubtedly, people from all ‘walks of life’ traverse this route daily, whether for business or pleasure or even to undertake daily exercise routines.
And not forgetting that in such a bustling location, visitors also traverse that route regularly as well.
Along that route, a major cause of concern revolves around the debilitated state in the vicinity of at least four bus stops.
Notably, of prime and urgent concern is the Bus Stop adjacent to the Massy Supermarket area, at Rodney Bay and the bus stop adjacent to the Rodney Heights Aquatic Centre (RHAC).
When the rain pours, particularly, at the lower end near Massy’s, the area is turned into a pool of water that makes it inaccessible for commuters and bus drivers to make a stop for the pickups and for passengers to disembark at that location; and likewise, the situation also happens near the RHAC bus stop.
While the authorities contemplate and assess the nature of works to be undertaken since there are reports of contractual agreements to be re-negotiated, there is a dire need for some form of temporary respite to at least rectify the situation at these bus stops in the interim.
These are some busy spots along that northern-bound route that people frequent daily and therefore merit some form of urgency to provide temporary measures to the situation until the project is tackled holistically and efficiently.