Drax Hall folk ‘want relief’ as access worsens

The people of Drax Hall Tenantry, St George, said today they feel as if they are being cut off from the rest of the island, as the only access road to the village, which has been in a state of disrepair for years, has worsened.

But they may have to wait for the road to be fixed sometime in the next six months, their MP has said.

Irate residents told Barbados TODAY that the rains make the road impassable, adding to their long list of commuting woes which include recurring damage to their vehicles.

When a Barbados TODAY team visited the area, one woman bounded out to complain about the conditions while declining to give her name. She said: “This is not something that just started, we have been living like this for years.

“People’s cars always getting damaged and sometimes you can’t even pass when it rains.

“It is a shame that we have been living like this where friends and family don’t want to come visit you because they don’t want to drive on the bad road.”

Another resident revealed that just two weeks ago, a signed petition was sent to area MP Dwight Sutherland, as they are at the stage where they cannot stand the road condition any longer.

He explained: “About two years ago the Ministry of Transport and Works came and dumped some stuff at the top of the road and smooth it out but that got washed back out in a matter of weeks.

“Just recently we had a lady coming in from overseas and the taxi could not bring her in all the way because of how bad the road is.”

Sutherland, who acknowledged receipt of the petition, told Barbados TODAY he fully endorsed the Drax Hall Tenantry residents’ demands. He revealed that as recently as last month, he spoke to Minister of Transport and Works William Duguid about his constituents’ plight. The minister promised Sutherland to have the road fixed within the first half of next year.

The St George South MP said: “We understand the situation and the road will be fixed.

“I support the residents in their cry for a decent road; it is in a horrible state.

“I have visited the area with the Ministry of Transport and Works last year and they have seen the state of the road. I have impressed upon the Minister and his team to have it done and I have forwarded my own letter to that ministry.

“The minister has indicated that he will fix the road in the first half of next year.” colvillemounsey@barbadostoday.bb