Highway interchange to start before December

That is the assurance from Works and Transport Minister Colm Imbert, as he promised "to ensure that another year will not pass without construction commencing on this project."

Speaking at the commissioning of 12 PTSC articulated buses yesterday at PTSC’s South Quay headquarters, Imbert said he had already met with the project’s consultants and reviewed the designs. He has since instructed engineers at the ministry to "ensure that construction of the interchange commences before December 2005."

Speaking to Newsday, the minister admitted that the project would take a number of months to complete in phases. He estimates, based on the designs he has seen, it will take between 24 to 30 months. He stressed his priority was to get the interchange started. He said the project would not be done by the ministry, but tendered out to contractors. The National Infrastructure Development Company would most likely assist in that process.

Imbert said the designs could not now be released as he has a meeting tomorrow with Canadian consultants, Cansult, where he would be presented with three options on the flow of traffic from West to South.

"I want to make sure the final designs on the West to South movement of traffic on the interchange are designed in a manner that allows for a smooth flow. The consultants will present me with three options to achieve that objective." He also announced that as part of the extension of the Churchill Roosevelt Highway to Sangre Grande, contracts have been awarded to extend the dualled carriageway from O’Meara Road to Antigua Road, Wallerfield, right up to the entrance of the University of Trinidad and Tobago (UTT) and beyond to the Eastern Main Road. Imbert said the work is expected to be completed within 12 to 18 months.

The minister said with more than 400,000 vehicles on the roads, which represented one vehicle to every three persons, traffic congestion was a major problem. Acknowledging that the road network was inadequate to meet the increasing demands of the population, Imbert said he had asked engineers to focus on several other highway expansion projects as priorities for commencement of construction within the next 12 to 18 months.

He identified these as construction of a new highway between San Fernando to Princes Town in the first instance, then to Rio Claro and eventually Mayaro.

Extension of the Solomon Hochoy Highway to Debe in the first instance, and then to Penal and eventually to La Brea and Point Fortin. Extension of the Diego Martin freeway from Westmoorings to Chaguaramas and expansion of the Uriah Butler Highway to add a third lane on both carriageways to Chaguanas in the first instance, and then to Preysal and eventually to San Fernando. And expansion of the capacity of the flyovers at Endeavour to serve the greater Chaguanas area and at Preysal to serve the Pt Lisas Industrial Estate and its environs.

Imbert promised to provide regular updates on the projects.