East Bank Berbice road project for year-end completion

Around 2.1 kilometres of the first layer of paved asphalt surface of the planned 5 kilometres of the $1.2Billion East Bank Berbice (EBB) has been completed.

Resident Engineer, Joel Tucker told the Department of Public Information (DPI) that this covers the stretch of road from Everton to Edinburgh and the section in Islington. The remaining 2.9 kilometres of asphalt surface will begin shortly.

Tucker said despite challenges with the May/June rains, the exercise which started in August 2017 will be completed by the end of the year.

“Presently, we’re 50 percent in terms of asphalt placed. It was difficult for us to place our subbase during rainy weather, so now that the rains have eased up we’ve begun most of our subbase work in the Glasgow and Heathburn area,” Tucker told DPI.

Some 1.9 kilometres of the base layer and the final layer of asphalt are earmarked for completion in Glasgow. Preparations are underway to begin the final layer of asphalt in the Edinburgh, Everton and Islington areas shortly.

Construction of the culvert at Baptiste Turn, Edinburgh is finished and another at Glasgow is approximately 90 percent complete. The remaining structures to be done are the bridges at Gay Park, Edinburgh and recentlyadded Everton.

“We’re now driving piles for the bridge at the Everton location and that is scheduled to be completed at the end of November.

It’s possible that we’ll complete the roadworks as scheduled but we may not complete all the structures before the end of the year,” the Resident Engineer stated.

Additionally, a total of 120 lightemitting diodes (LED) roadway lighting fixtures were installed between Stanleytown and Everton Village in August.

This project is being executed by the Ministry of Public Infrastructure’s Special Project Unit utilising its own equipment and employing residents from the area.