BTEditorial – Folks of the North pay too a hefty price

We know full well that there is always a price to pay for progress and in the time of COVID-19, the price may be extremely high. We are also cognisant that when any project starts, the intended day of completion and the actual day of completion may vary.

But all of the above give little comfort to the people who live and have to traverse to the north of our island daily.

In our editorial of October 15, 2020, when it was announced that the major road works to be carried out on Highway 1 were about to start, we pointed out how this could end up being a major headache for road users. What compounded the issue at the time was that there were road works being done on the Ronald Mapp Highway (Highway 2A) at the same time.

We suggested that having road works done simultaneously on the two main arteries to the north of the island was unwise. Nevertheless, the goodly folk in the Ministry of Transport and Works approved it and work began anyway. It has proved to be a disaster, save the COVID-19 restrictions.

Some businesses and all schools were closed leading to less traffic on the roadways. But here we are, months later, carrying on with business as usual, the majority of schools across the country are open and the horror of moving to and from the north weekly is now a nightmare.

For months there was a huge opening in the road at the Holetown Police Station. Passersby would see little or no progress made to the road works there.

On Monday, the Barbados Water Authority issued a press release stating that crews were repairing a burst on a section of the 16-inch main in High Ridge Road, Sandy Lane, St James.

“As a result, customers located along Highway 1 between Lazaretto and Limegrove in Holetown, St James may experience low water pressure or outages,” the release read.

So, the area on the West Coast was further affected. Whether the fault is that of the Ministry of Transport and Works or that of the Barbados Water Authority is to be determined.

What we know for certain is that no fault lies with the honest, hardworking taxpayers who must travel to and from the north. Sadly, they are the ones who are being inconvenienced.

Granted, a trip from Bridgetown to Connell Town, Pie Corner, Boscobel or Indian Ground is no dash from The City to Deacons Farm or Stadium Road. Northern commuters are forced to take two buses while most others need only pay one bus fare one way.  A person who lives in the north and works in Christ Church can start his or her day as early as 4 a.m. and get back home around 8 p.m. The same applies to someone living in Christ Church and working in St Lucy. The only advantage the latter has is if he or she gets a ride to Speightstown.

So, on average the worker who lives in the north is made to pay a high price for living “too far”. This is all magnified when the bus on which the individual is travelling, has to divert and in most cases become stuck in more traffic. Then there are the commuters who must stand for the entire trip. The hours spent commuting become as laborious as the actual job they are tasked with doing daily. The student already going to school to shortened study hours can ill-afford to be late.

Minister of Transport, Works and Water Resources Ian Gooding-Edghill said that the repairs would be done in two phases. The first phase, which covers 6,500 metres, was slated to be carried out from the Frank Walcott Roundabout, Black Rock, to Seaview Road, St James.

Gooding-Edghill also told the media during a press briefing that that phase was scheduled to end by December 15th.

We do not profess to know what transpired that has caused the delay. We are convinced that if humane scenarios were considered instead of viewing the project simply from a clinical standpoint, more logic, reasoning and haste would be applied.

The people who commute to and from the north of the island daily have been “inconvenienced” for too long. Not only has it been too long but the evidence of progress is simply too little.

We now turn our attention to the second phase and hope that some lessons were learnt and a more efficient approach is employed when carrying out those road works.

We can only hope that those delays have not cost taxpayers too much money.

Those hardworking taxpayers who live and commute in the north of Barbados deserve better. We are confident that the northern MPs, the Honourable Edmund Hinkson, the Honourable Colin Jordan and the Honourable Peter Phillips would all agree on this.