Leeward Highway project gets green light
Work on the rehabilitation of the Leeward Highway is about to begin.
On April 25, a contract for the rehabilitation of the Leeward Highway was signed between the Ministry of Transport and Works and the construction company, Dipcon Engineering Services Ltd.{{more}}
Construction work in the $25.14 million project, which is expected to commence in June, will begin in Kingstown and end at Layou.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Minister of Transport and Works Julian Francis noted that the rehabilitation project has been in the works for a long time.
Francis also shared his belief that the current project will be a significant improvement to the road network on the leeward side of the island.
“This has been long in coming. I am attending this signing today with mixed feelings, because it took too long to get these things done, but yet after waiting so long, you’re always happy in the end to get the contract signed,” Francis said.
After outlining some of the major changes that will be undertaken during the construction phase, the minister noted that there will be inconveniences caused for persons traversing the Leeward Highway.
Although he assured that contractors will work hard to minimize these inconveniences, Francis took the opportunity to encourage persons to leave home early, so that they can arrive at their destinations on time.
“When this work starts, if you’re accustomed to leaving home at seven o’ clock to get to work for eight, please leave home at six o’ clock. Let’s programme ourselves,” he said.
“You canât fix the road unless you mash it up. You have to dig it up, you have to inconvenience people. Then, youâll get a good road. So, I’m asking the people to be understanding and cooperative and the implementersâ¦to make sure we try to facilitate the travelling public.”
Director of Dipcon Engineering Services Ltd Ian Singh thanked the Government of St Vincent and the Grenadines for awarding his company the contract.
After acknowledging the importance of the road to tourism, commerce and commuters, Singh pledged not only to build a first class road, but also to minimize, as much as possible, the inconveniences for the travelling public.
“We will endeavour to build a solid first class road that will stand the test of time.
“The inconvenience during the construction of this project will be substantial. At its busiest point, there are approximately 9,000 vehicles that pass on that road everyday. Weâll be considerate and act responsibly in our programming and execution. Weâll try our best to reduce inconveniences, but at the same time, we have to complete the road in the quickest possible time,” he said.
The rehabilitation of the Leeward Highway is estimated to take 21 months.(BK)
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