PM insists on timely highway project completion

WESTERN BUREAU:

PRIME MINISTER P.J. Patterson is insisting that work on segment two of the North Coast Highway be completed without the myriad of problems which plagued segment one of the project.

Speaking at the groundbreaking for segment two at Braco in Trelawny last week, Mr. Patterson said he hoped the second phase would be completed on time and within budget.

"We have learnt a great deal from what happened on segment one and we are determined that history must not repeat itself," Mr. Patterson said. "I hope it will be done without any cost overruns."

Construction of segment two will begin at once, he said, and should be completed within 30 months or by April 2004. Work stoppages and cost overruns have hampered segment one of the North Coast Highway since work first started in September 1997. The project is now two years behind schedule.

Earlier this year, Minister of Transport and Works Peter Phillips announced that segment one would be completed by next March, and will cost US$45 million, US$20 million more than the original contract. Work on segment two has been divided into four sections to make it more manageable for the contractors. Section one stretches 27.42 kilometres from Montego Bay to Falmouth in Trelawny, and includes the Falmouth bypass. Sections two and three runs from Falmouth to Salem in St. Ann and is 41.77 kilometres long, while section four runs 21.81 kilometres from Salem to Ocho Rios. Mr. Patterson said the highway would open new areas of economic opportunity, and would make travel on the roads safer.

"This road is being built to support tourism, ... to enhance agricultural production, to facilitate industrial growth, ... to cater to the expansion of the population, ... and generally it will enhance our ability to provide a better road network throughout the entire north coast," he said.

The North Coast Highway will cover 287 kilometres from Negril in the west to Portland in the east. When completed, the highway will be the main link between the tourist capitals of Montego Bay, Negril, Ocho Rios and Port Antonio.

­ Denise Clarke

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