Old law will prevent the halt of road construction

MINISTERS will use a 55-year-old law to seize land, in a bid to break a deadlock that has brought some road building schemes to a halt.

Deputy Prime Minister and government spokesman Kudret Özersay (above) said action would be taken to allow the completion of new roads — comments understood to refer to schemes such as the partly built Lefkoşa bypass, where work first started six years ago.

Problems with compulsory purchase of land also stalled the widening of the Alsancak-Karşıyaka road — for which the contract was originally awarded in 2010 — leading to local frustration that culminated in a public protest in January.

The proposal from the Transport and Public Works Ministry was one of the key issues discussed at a three-hour long Cabinet meeting on Tuesday.

“The Council of Ministers is acting in accordance with the 1962 Compulsory Property Acquisition Act, and will follow a process without skipping the procedure,” Dr Özersay said following the meeting.

“We have taken a decision to expropriate private properties to open the way for the road projects . . . Although expropriation decisions had been taken . . . they weren’t properly followed through procedurally.”

Dr Özersay said work on new road schemes had been held up because landowners had taken out injunctions, which had in turn led to contractors pulling out because of losses.

He said ministers had also decided to ban work at building sites on Sundays while allowing construction up to 9pm on other days — and beyond that, firms must obtain “special permission”.

Labour and Social Security Minister Zeki Çeler said such permissions would “only be granted in exceptional circumstances”, and added: “With this decision, we have brought regulation and restriction to what had been unlimited work hours. However, when necessary, such as during the summer, working hours could change on extremely hot days for construction workers.”