How to solve TT’s traffic problems

THE EDITOR: An Open Letter to Minister Franklin Khan. Half the population, together with all of our heavy industries calls south of Chaguanas home. Most of our manufacturing and ministries are in the north along the east west corridor, including all the gravel pits, and chicken farms. The distance from Trincity to Grand Bazaar is 18 kilometres, and from Grand Bazaar to south Chaguanas is another 18 kilometres. (I measured it). I will build a highway on Caroni lands from Trincity going southwest to south Chaguanas, and avoid coming to Grand Bazaar to go south. I will build another highway from the Morvant Flyover going East South East along the Caroni River, connecting up by way of an overpass to a six lane Solomon Hochoy Highway. Then continuing east along the Caroni River connecting up to the new highway from Trincity south of the CR Highway, again bypassing Grand Bazaar junction altogether.

I will no longer need a UNC interchange at Grand Bazaar, or figuring out what to do with all those traffic lights from El Socorro to Piarco. I will make the Beetham Highway all the way through Wrightson Road to the Stadium, into three full lanes each way. And I will relocate that damn Licensing Office. It is about time we get a new modern structure, and the Waterfront will get much needed land for expansion. I will convert the Lady Young to Four Lanes removing the bottlenecks at both Morvant Junction and the top of Charlotte Street to the Savannah. I will make Charlotte Street a total One Way going south. The south side Savannah road going west will be widened to three lanes with no parking at anytime. (There are adequate empty spaces inside the savannah for food vendors). Traffic from the east will enter Port-of-Spain from north and south freely. I will try not to be shortsighted and forget to convert the Kirpalani Roundabout with an overpass.

Please do the math and you will understand the savings in money, time, gasoline, traffic jams, and stress. The CR Highway in most part is no longer a highway, with huge populations living on either side of this route; it is now a Main Road and needs proper traffic lights. A case in point is the intersection at the Solo factory. There is continuing large-scale industrial expansion on both sides of this road, with the industrialists grabbing up the balance of the lands as soon as it becomes available. But all we are hearing from our Tsars is building an overpass for the pedestrians. What about the present and future vehicular traffic? Where are they supposed to exit unto the highway (I mean Main Road)? I will kill two birds with one stone. I will use half that money and put a modern (note the word modern) traffic lights to allow pedestrians to cross safely. No more overpass. We have to stop doing things today for yesterday. There is such a thing as the future. It is time to stop running the country from behind.

20/20 means First World Status; every one is equal, no more bus route for only the wealthy. I will convert both the EMR and the Bus Route to one ways. No more traffic jams. I will install modern traffic lights at the El Socorro junction so that human beings will after 25 years no longer have to run the traffic gauntlet trying to cross from the top of El Socorro to Saddle Road. Just imagine one of the busiest junctions in the whole country and not a single proper taxi stand. We do have the land, except it was used to build a (shopping whatever) no one uses. I will break that down together with the old post office and the fire station, which has outgrown its uses, and build a taxi stand that is worthy of the people. I will hire EMAIL to build those highways for half the price that it will cost to build that Monorail. I will save many billions.

With proper roads, and a good bus system, I will no longer need that pie in the sky Monorail dream. It is ironic how we visit foreign first world roads, but can never build a comparable road system. For that matter, can you or anyone else name a road here in TT that is comparable to one anywhere in North America? As for that Light Rail System, when are we going to do the feasibility studies? What is the cost factor? Will it be six or ten billion dollars? What is the return on investment? On whose land is it to be built on the East West Corridor? Are we to shut down the Bus Route and use this land? Is it to be build along the CR Highway? Surely passengers will have to take a taxi to and from the station, so where are we going to locate the taxi stands at each stop?

A majority of the people think it (rail) will be a good idea, but since half of us cannot even read, is it possible we following sheep? Sir, don’t let history repeat itself. We once had a railway system with diesel engines and coaches with beautiful padded seats. Call Dr Williams and ask him why he shut it down. Oh Yes! And I will fire all our engineers, commissioners, and permanent secretaries and  bring in the foreign people like at TTPost. I am talking 20/20, oil money flowing, more middle class people who will want to improve their lives by buying at least a car, but our Commissioner of Traffic is always preaching we have too many cars now. I need a paradigm shift. I need people with the vision to break it down and start from scratch. Enough of that Add-On engineering. Don’t forget, I want to be First World starting today. I am giving you permission Mr Khan to hand this in to PM Manning as your five-year plan.

NIZAM MOHAMMED
San Juan