Repairs to undermined roads on JVD, VG, Tortola to begin by year’s end
Residents can expect to see permanent fixes to roads that have been undermined on Tortola, Jost Van Dyke, and Virgin Gorda as early as this year.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Works Jeremy Hodge told BVI News on Wednesday that the designs for those said works have already started.
He said the project will be funded from a $25 million sum that has been earmarked for overall improvements to road infrastructure in the territory. The source of those funds is from a rehabilitation loan from the Caribbean Development Bank.
“What we have done is identified all the areas in the territory that are undermining, and we are going to prioritise them because there are only so many we can do in any given year,” Hodge said.
The Great Mountain, Lower Hope and Little Dix Hill roads have been identified as priority thoroughfares on Tortola. The Long Bay to Hog Haven road on Virgin Gorda and a portion of the road on the eastern end of Jost Van Dyke have been tagged as the roads in need of urgent attention on those sister islands.
“Those are the areas that we want some speed on,” Hodge said. “If all goes well, it should start this year, but the completion of those works will roll into next year.”
Other works
In the meantime, interim works to the tune of $2.5 million are ongoing on the four main islands, the permanent secretary said.
“What is happening is remedial repairs to make the road friendlier to drive territory-wide. And, while we would love to use all this money used for permanent fixes, it takes time,” he explained.
As part of the road improvements, the second phase of the Lee Road Project on Virgin Gorda, and the Cow Wreck road on Anegada have now been scheduled for
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Great idea in resurfacing the roads but what’s the sense doing roads with out a proper drainage system,the Asphalt is so high that the little drains it had where someone would normally walk has now become so high and on edge u can easily twist ur ankles also I think after they finish the roads like how their doing it now they should have a truck with a brush or some sweep machine to sweep all those loose gravel/pebbles from the Asphalt on the road it’s a hazard.Bikers Becarefull !!
What about the Road at Harrigan’s estate??? it’s been closed since Paul Wattley days as Minister of Communications and works…
Great news that some roads in need of repair will soon be tackled, especially in JVD where previous administrations have visited and viewed for themselves .As a previous individual stated ‘Drainage’ is of the essence especially with dirt roads . Better roads spur development.
The retaining wall on the road north from the valley to north sound below the Minton hill road to the water tank is leaning out instead of in and is badly cracked. The police had cones there to stop people driving on the cracked part of the road as it was felt it might collapse if a heavy truck drove too close to the wall or if a safari bus parked there.
This is the main road on VG and is traveled by hundreds of cars ,buses , and trucks everyday. In comparison only less than 100 cars travel the long bay to hog heaven route each day and it is rare to see another car on that road when driving it.
Additionally the road by the entrance to Gorda peak was washed out in 2017 in the pre Irma flood and is still not repaired, just a drum and a cone for warning. Over the last year a hole has developed on the inside edge of the road which causes motorists the move out into the road center where they can hit a vehicle also coming from north that has moved over to miss the big washout.
Both these should be fixed before the hog heaven road.
But of course the segregated community will get . first priority, as usual.
Not about about race, but facts. Show differently and the dialog will also.
Please Min. Rhymer while at it please have a look at the road at the entrance of Havers Estate…. it is falling apart and very dangerous to drive on
What does the PS mean by a permanent fix? Just resurfacing a road with base failure is not a good use of limited funds; it is a temporary fix. The proper fix for a failed road is reconstruction, ie, milling the road down to the subgrade. If the money can permanently fix 5 miles of permanent road or ten miles of temporary repair, do the 5 miles of permanent fix. In doing the permanent fix, ensure there is a proper cross slope so that runoff does not pond on the road, properly inspect the work being put in place, ensure road passed the minimum proof roll test, ensure that the hot mix asphalt is of the right temperture and with proper ingredients, proper road side drainage…..etc.
Undoubtedly, the September 2017 storms——hurricanes Irma and Maria——contributed to damage of the road network. As result of the storms, age, design, construction, maintenance……etc, many centerline miles of road are in a severely deteriorated condition. The grey lining in this dark cloud/road is that there is an opportunity to do things differently. There is a lifetime opportunity to redesign and reconstruct the road network. Typically, a well-designed, constructed, operated and maintained road should have a useful life of 20-30 years.
Proper drainage is a crucial factor in the design and construction of any road. Poor drainage is a major contributing cause of premature road failure. A well-designed and constructed road will perform poorly and have a short life span. Further, the surface course/riding surface deals with the highest level of stress; it is constructed with the highest quality material. However, a strong surface course over a weak base, sub-base and sub-grade will perform poorly and fail prematurely. Thus, resurfacing a failed road without stabilizing the base/sub-base and sub-grade and improving the drainage will result in the road failing prematurely. Any temporary fix will be a welcomed improvement to motorists. However, fixing the roads right the first time will result in cost savings, improved morale, improved serviceability, avoid rework……..etc
Correction…..”A well-designed and constructed road will perform poorly and have a short life span” should have read “A well-designed and constructed road with poor drainage will perform poorly and have a short life span. “
Drainage, drainage and more drainage seem to be the cry. Any bets poor drainage will still be a problem.