Protests over bad roads hit Cedros, Barrackpore

THE travelling public, including schoolchildren, was left stranded in parts of South Trinidad yesterday after residents blocked the Cedros Main Road to protest road conditions while Barrackpore taxi drivers refused to ply their trade also in protest at what they termed “deplorable road conditions.” From as early as 3 am yesterday, Cedros residents cut down trees in four areas — Fyfoo Hill, Bowen Trace, Pt Cocoa Junction and Chatham, which were used to block the main road at several points and inconvenience drivers and the travelling public. Traffic was at a standstill until police and firemen arrived several hours later to remove the debris, which included logs, tyres and boulders. While firemen and other persons removed the debris, armed police stood guard to ensure law and order was maintained.

One of the protesting Cedros villagers, Keish Baboolal, complained Government had hired a contractor about 18 months ago to undertake repairs to the Cedros Main Road, but everything was being done “at a crippled snail’s pace.” “So far what these contractors doing and nothing, is the same. The last time we had a protest, no one in authority came to ask us what the problem was,” Baboolal cried. The aggrieved villager added that while he understood police had to do their job, he believed they could have been a little more lenient towards them. “All we trying to do is to get the Works and Transport Minister’s attention so we could get our roads fixed. About four jeeploads of policemen came down this morning,” Baboolal said. Meanwhile, in an incident police believe was not linked to the Cedros protest, a large tree fell on top of a man’s car while he and his family were returning home on Tuesday night.

However, Tage Nowrang, a supervisor at the Siparia Regional Corporation, claimed a power saw was used to cut down the tree and he believes this was part of the villagers’ protest. He told Newsday that around 11.30 pm, he and his wife Cintra and his two children Neil, nine, and Nicole, six, were returning home in his car. On reaching Chatham, a tree fell on top of the car bonnet. “I thought it was bandits, so I reversed and I passed on the side and drove off,” Nowrang said. He said his wife sustained a cut on her finger. Nowrang said he agreed the roads were in a bad condition, but added, “I really cannot handle the blocking off of the road because I have to be up and down and it will affect my work.” At Barrackpore, over 66 taxi drivers parked their vehicles at St Croix Recreation Ground leaving hundreds stranded.

Barrackpore Taxi Drivers Association public relations officer, Chandthe Rampersad, said taxi drivers were fed up of promises made by Works and Transport Minister Franklin Khan, to have repairs done to the St Croix Main Road. Rampersad said the road had deteriorated to the stage where drivers had to repair their vehicles on a daily basis. He said a letter signed by the Works Minister dated September 12, 2003, promised that the Naparima/Mayaro Road, pavements, drainage and landslips would have been repaired in the quickest possible time. He added that after one year the taxi drivers were still awaiting these promised repairs. After spending thousands of dollars to repair their cars, the taxi drivers said they had had enough and embarked on protest action.

Rampersad said in some places the road had almost completely disappeared and nothing was being done in those areas. “If by this week we do not get a positive response from Minister Khan, I am going to take all the parts that I changed in my car for the past ten years and carry it by the minister’s house in Moka, Maraval, and somebody has to compensate me for my expenses,” Rampersad said. In full agreement were other taxi drivers, who said, if necessary, they would hire a truck to carry all their car parts, including springs and shocks to the minister’s home and await compensation. Rampersad said the taxi drivers were prepared for the long haul. Efforts to reach Khan, who is also the chairman of the ruling People’s National Movement (PNM) for a comment yesterday, proved futile.