The residents told The Gleaner that since the closure of the station, they have been suffering the inconvenience of travelling all the way to Riversdale to make reports to the police. Riversdale is more than 10 miles away.

''The police station is needed up here as there is a high level of criminality up here, especially animal thieves, and people who just tek anything them see," said Olive Schliefer, a 71-year-old senior citizen in the area. "When we reach the station, you can't catch them."

Distance a difficulty

Those who make it to the Riversdale station find the transportation costs challenging and untenable, especially with the high unemployment rate in the area.

A policeman at the Riversdale Pollice Station who did not wish to be identified acknowledged that the distance also poses a difficulty for the police in responding to complaints.

He said the limited number of personnel at the station is just not enough to adequately serve citizens as a result of the number of reports that come in from other areas once served by the Troja Police Station.

The senior policeman said an additional vehicle would be very helpful as there was currently only one service vehicle at the station, meaning response time is often ineffective.