Pothole woes on Padmore Drive

THE EDITOR, Madam:

MAKING THE right turn from Molynes Road onto Padmore Drive (referenced Padmore Avenue on Google Maps), you will encounter a relatively smooth surface at the top of the road. Those unfamiliar with Padmore Drive/avenue will soon discover that this is a camouflage for what really lies ahead. There seems to be a correlation between that smooth section and a business place which leads on to Colbeck Avenue. This is to the right coming down from Molynes, then going on Landford Terrace, Bayardo Avenue, and the business is located on Chalmers Avenue. Continuing down the road, you will encounter potholes, visibly carved out and earmarked for filling and asphalting.

It is further down Padmore Drive that you will encounter the huge craters that cause all types of vehicles to rock like boats. It is tiring to drive through the potholes, having to swerve from one side of the road to another trying to alleviate some of the poor conditions of the road which also affect other drivers coming from the other direction because of the swerving which can cause accidents.

Other potholes are springing up as you approach the Polyflex Foam Limited on to Waltham Park Road. All this is good and well if this is on a clear day. What if you are driving in heavy rain and the road is covered in water and you are unfamiliar with the depressions? This is nothing new in roads leading off the main, but that does not make it acceptable. The census is now in progress! Do we really need the census to tell us what roads to fix?

Jamaica was fortunate to have been spared the wrath of Tropical Storm Ian. However, its indelible mark was left on the island in the form of lingering showers, within a couple days of its passage. This would have worsened the condition on Padmore Drive, for, had Ian stayed longer, the next advisory from the Meteorological Services office might have been, “Padmore Drive impassable, boats required to cross it!”

JOAN FRANCIS