The Barbados Association of Masqueraders (BAM) has defended the new route for this year’s Grand Kadooment parade, citing persistent security and safety problems along the traditional masquerade route.
The new route will start at the Bridgetown Helipad, proceed past Pelican Village, through President Kennedy Drive, onto Black Rock, and along the Mighty Grynner Highway, finishing near Kensington Oval.
There were several issues with the old route, said BAM President Jason Thompson. These included the narrow roads lacking sidewalks that forced spectators to stand in the streets, creating challenges for bands and security. He also noted that smaller connecting roads provided escape routes for criminals.
“Our primary focus was security [and] ensuring that we have a route that is secure,” he said. “We are selling an international product to persons coming in to visit Barbados, so we need to ensure that it is safe not only for locals but for those international revellers as well. For many years, we have had challenges operating along the small roads. Station Hill and going through the cut rock especially, was always a challenging area. There by Combermere and going all the way down by Bush Hall, Bank Hall, many of those roads do not even carry sidewalks. So because there is no sidewalk, spectators are actually standing in the road.”
According to the BAM head, a change was required due to security challenges, as confined roads caused bands to be stretched further along the road than necessary.
“We needed to find roads that are not highly populated by what we would deem as the hotspot areas – those little gaps where violence can take place and persons can dash through and go. Right now, based on our current route, if you leave Pelican Village and you come all the way up Kensington Oval, that entire beginning jump, there is no dash through . . . on Spring Garden, there is no dash through; on one side is the [beach] so there is nowhere to dash and go,” he said.
“So there is less manpower that you need for security forces because they pretty much only need to secure one half of the road because the other half is the border of the country. It allows [police] to manage the road better.”
Thompson added: “Last year, we came from Warrens all the way down . . . . That is a long stretch for our limited security forces to have to control. That is why we ultimately enjoyed the year during COVID where we went to the highway . . . . The highway did not have any roads to dash through, and that is why the security on that particular route would have been favourable.”
Marketability for the big jump up was also top of mind for stakeholders this year, with Thompson stating that the picturesque views in and around the Pelican Village area were seen as a positive.
“This route carries something as simple as a picturesque view as you pass Pelican Village. There are the borders right there with the water after the market, where persons take pictures along that side; you will have pictures of the beach in your background as early as 10 o’clock in the morning while you are wearing your full costume.
“That is one of the locations that we are suggesting that the judging takes place – right there in front Pelican Village. Once you have the camera, you can have the beautiful Barbados setting in the background as persons are watching Crop Over. They are watching Grand Kadooment and seeing the costumes, but in the background is the beautiful sea and the ocean and everything there.”
Thompson added that vendors will be in no way left out as a result of the changes, as several ideal spots along the new route have been identified as “party zones”.
“Party zones are areas that will have vending in open lots. It will also have music, it will have a party atmosphere, and it will continue from beginning to end. So there is going to be a party taking place all day long,” the BAM president said.
