Works Ministry to role out massive road repair programme

The Ministry of Works is readying itself to launch a massive road repair
programme to be undertaken simultaneously in several communities.
To this end, the Cabinet on Wednesday invited a six-person delegation from the
Ministry of Works led by its Director, Aldin Crump and Permanent Secretary Sean
Cenac, who provided Cabinet with their plans for fixing the roads throughout the
country especially in the many communities where age and rains have created
many potholes.
“They provided a strategic plan to repair the roads and drains beginning in nine
separate neighborhoods. The contractors will lay 100 feet by 18 feet daily until all
community roads are complete. Pre formed drains and sidewalks will be added at
the side to lengthen the side of the roads,” the Cabinet Notes reported.
The Cabinet was informed that current building practice add to some of the
problems with the country’s roadways. “Many households have failed to include
soak-ways on their property to take run off from cesspools; as a consequence,
overflow from cesspools run into the streets and gutters undermining the surface
and the longevity of many roads,” the Notes revealed.
As part of the road programme, the ministry will engage teams of crews working
up to nineteen hours Mondays to Fridays to speedup the road programme. “A
night crew will also be at work from 6pm to 2am daily barring the weekends. The
Ministry of Works will have to employ approximately 40 new workers, purchase
new trucks, backhoes, earth movers, and become a large producer of concrete for
the new Concrete Road roll-out slabs that are intended to last more than 20 years,”
the Cabinet learnt.