THE PORTMORE leg of Highway 2000 is to be officially opened on July 13, with consultations on the issue of the toll charge set to conclude next week, as the Government continues discussions with representatives from that St. Catherine community.
Making the announcement at Monday's post-Cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House, Information and Development Minister, Senator Colin Campbell said there were certain issues that had to be ironed out in order to facilitate the cost of the toll.
Noting that the construction of the six-lane highway into Portmore was costing approximately US$100 million, Senator Campbell said the concessionaires had made a particular submission to the Government and "we are discussing it".
"We have to look at the whole issue of affordability, the proposals for frequent users, all the issues that would arise..and they are very intricate," he added.
He explained that the concession holders had a method of calculating the toll, which had been approved in the agreement.
WORKING ON TOLL
"Naturally, Cabinet must have concerns as to whether that toll is affordable. It is a very complex issue, it's not just the toll itself, it has to do with how do we ensure that we have a toll that is affordable, that will provide incentive to use the highway, because you have to have a certain level of traffic for the viability of the highway," the Minister said.
He pointed out also that a number of roads in that Municipality had to be upgraded for access to the highway.
