#BTEditorial – Shoddy road works must come to a halt

It felt like a moment of déjà vu when we heard the complaints of frustrated residents and business owners who were affected by flooding on Highway 1 last Friday.

It was only two weeks prior that Government officials were boasting of the completion of Phase 1 of the Highway 1 road rehabilitation project. On national radio, some praised the work done while others voiced their dissatisfaction with the resurfacing of the road.
But, just weeks later, not months or years, heavy rains fell and the road was not only badly flooded but there was damage done to it as well. The irony is that one of the main objectives of the massive road repair project was to “mitigate flooding” on the West Coast.

Unfortunately, this happened before.

Only last year, after a section of the Ronald Mapp Highway (Highway 2A) was paved, there was heavy rainfall and the road was severely damaged. It was also mere weeks prior that the contractors, Infra, had paved the road at White Hall, St Peter when they had to do it all over again.

How are our contractors getting it so wrong? Is it our engineers that are getting it wrong? How are these miscalculations happening when undertaking these milliondollar projects? Something is wrong and taxpayers need answers.

It is happening too often. A similar thing happened back in January 2019, when the Pleasant Hall, St Peter stretch of the Charles Duncan O’Neale Highway was unevenly surfaced and also had to be redone.

But what makes the mishaps on both Highway 1 and the Ronald Mapp Highway so egregious, is the fact that both roads constitute the main arteries to the north of the island. So, last Friday and on Monday this week, after heavy rain days, traversing to and from the north proved to be a nightmare.

While the newly-paved Highway 1 was flooded and in some cases impassable, there was massive flooding on the Ronald Mapp Highway as well.

Sadly, those hoping to get any reprieve by using the Old Nine Road heading up to Sandy Lane Golf Club, St James, were denied that privilege as well. Actually, a car stalled while trying to wade through those waters.

On the Ronald Mapp Highway, motorists were forced to skilfully manoeuvre through high floodwaters at Arch Hall, St Thomas; St Thomas Parish Church; just before Portvale Sugar Cane Factory, St James; Westmoreland, St James; and Upper Carlton, St James.

For many, it was a battle. Added to that, traffic was crawling in both directions.

So, what alternative do they have? When will people travelling to and from the north be able to do so unimpeded on a rainy day? These are reasonable questions, given the fact that the Highway 1 project alone is costing taxpayers $15.2 million.

We were heartened, but still contrite, when Minister in the Ministry of Transport, Works and Water Resources Charles Griffith. along with deputy chief technical officer Philip Tudor and Deputy Chief Technical Officer, Design, Jason Bowen, fielded calls on VOB’s Down to Brass Tacks call-in programme on Wednesday.

There were many calls from irate and frustrated road users who criticised the road works and demanded better. Maybe the rain was a blessing in disguise since it showed up the quality of work done.

It was revealed that the five contractors who were involved in the project were instructed to rectify the flaws. The contractors named were: Infra, Jose Y Jose, Arthur Construction, C.O. Williams Construction and Ajax Construction. Government gave the assurance that the work would be done at no extra cost. As it should be.

There is now talk of raising the manhole covers and doing repairs to several entrance roads leading onto the highway.
We stated in a previous editorial, while commenting on the damage done at White Hall, St Peter, that contractors cannot be allowed to get away with shoddy work, especially when millions of taxpayers’ dollars are being spent.

We still hold this view, but we take it further. We want to know what will be done to ensure that these mishaps, which now seem to be common practice, will not occur in the future, at least not with this frequency.

What measures will be taken or what will be implemented so that this can be nipped in the bud?` We are concerned that if this is not dealt with, it may soon become the norm. Are our citizens asking too much? We say no. They expect better and better is what they should be afforded at all times, whether it is road repairs, education or healthcare.

Over the years, it seems that we have been reluctant to hold people to account, especially where contractor and hirer sup at the same table. But there are certain situations that require more than platitudes and articulate excuses. We have highlighted flooding but, lest we forget, shoddy roadworks can also cost lives. And that is an entirely different ball game.