KINGSTON - Today, September 21, 2015, three hundred and eighty two passengers capitalized on the river taxi service plying the New Amsterdam/Rosginol stellings’ route– an initiative implemented by the Cooperative Republic of Guyana (CRG) in an effort to ease the financial burden of citizens crossing the Berbice River Bridge.
The taxis commenced operation from 6 am and ended at 6 pm.
Passengers of the taxis on the 11 return trips made between New Amsterdam and Rosignol, included 269 adults and 66 school children and pensioners. In addition, 47 students used the school contract scheme- an arrangement with Transport and Harbours Department (T&HD) that allowed students in the past to purchase a card for $200, valid for a month, to travel on a barge.
A one-way trip from New Amsterdam to Rosignol takes about 10 to 12 minutes, and costs $120. That same trip over the bridge takes at least eight minutes and costs $300. However, the service is available to toddlers, school aged children up to the secondary level and pensioners free of cost.
Two taxis, which accommodate 33 passengers each, will be operating the route on a one month trial basis. As the demand increases, additional water taxis will be introduced.
Meanwhile, David Patterson, Minister of Public Infrastructure is pleased that there were no hiccups.
“From all reports, it has been a good first day,” he stated.
The Minister is also advocating for community involvement added, “When my colleague Minister Annette [Minister within the Public Infrastructure Ministry] and I met the four Chambers recently, they were informed that when this initiative picks up individuals in Regions 5 and 6 will have the opportunity to offer the service. We firmly believe in community engagement.”
Residents’ feedback
Financially, the introduction of the water taxis is touted by passengers as “a great idea.”
Shoundell Benjamin of Ithaca, a village along West Bank Berbice, was heading over to Rosignol to catch a minibus to head home.
“I really appreciated the move because if I had to go over the Bridge, my return fare would have been between $800 and $1,000. Do you know how much I will be paying today overall? $440….that’s right, half of what I would have paid,” Benjamin revealed.
A Bath Settlement resident, Kemo Ramdehall, echoed similar sentiments. He is a student at the University of Guyana, Tain Campus.
This morning, he parked his vehicle at the Rosignol Stelling, used the water taxi, and hopped into a minibus to Tain. The cost of his trip back and forth totaled $640.
“Prior to this morning, I would have had to spend $2,200 to cross the bridge, plus gas. Today, I spent $240 on the water taxi and $400 to and from Tain campus,” the young man pointed out.
Likewise, Vanessa Gangoo and Latchman Linder, who were awaiting the taxi service from Rosignol Stelling were grateful for the new dispensation.
Ms. Gangoo admitted that she was excited about the service and revealed she was going to NA for a little shopping. “A friend told me that it was a great experience.”
When asked about the financial aspect of the service, the Rosginol resident stated, “Well I would have had to pay $600 but now all I am paying is $240 return.”
Mr. Linder, who was accompanying relatives to the New Amsterdam Hospital, added the water taxi service will allow him to spend the “extra money elsewhere.”
KINGSTON - An aeronautical surveillance service will be launched in November 2015 announced Public Infrastructure Minister, David Patterson, who was at the time speaking at the commissioning of Trans Guyana Airways’ new Raytheon Beechcraft 1900d aircraft last evening.
“Guyana will be the first country in the Caribbean and South America to introduce the use of Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast (ADS-B) and we have made provisions in our 2016 budget to continue this project towards completion,” the Minister informed the audience.
ADS-B is a cooperative surveillance technology in which an aircraft determines its position via satellite navigation and periodically broadcasts it, enabling it to be tracked.
Minister Patterson noted that as of August, there was a six percent increase in international passenger arrivals at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA). There was an overall total of 165,000 incoming passengers, the second highest recorded at the main port of entry.
As a result, he posited that the time has come, for the aeronautical surveillance service. Discussions have also commenced to improve the country's search and rescue operations.
Meanwhile, the public infrastructure minister disclosed that his ministry is aggressively pursuing other carriers to operate at CJIA and will be meeting with several of them in this regard.
Speaking on the local front, Tourism Minister, Cathy Hughes expressed remorse that so many of Guyana’s interior airstrips have been in a deplorable state over the past two decades, but assured that the new administration will work to improve them in the near future.
“….and I know that the Ministry of Public Infrastructure has drawn up a work plan that will see a number of these interior airstrips being cleared, resurfaced, generally upgraded and lengthened over the next few months,” she added.
Minister Hughes noted that the main spin off benefits of this project is to provide a solution to transportation woes for persons living in the hinterland and to give tourism a boost. (National Communications Network)
KINGSTON - The Force Account Unit (FAU) wishes to advise motorists that a section of the University of Guyana road – between the Railway Embankment and the Rupert Craig Highway – will be closed to traffic tomorrow, September 18, 2015 between 09:00 hrs and 13:00 hrs.
The closure is to facilitate the installation of a culvert.
The Ministry apologizes for any inconvenience caused.
KINGSTON - Under the Ministry of Public Infrastructure (MPI) Miscellaneous Road Programme, roads continue to be rehabilitated throughout Regions 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6.
Residents of Sideline Dam, North Vergenogen, East Bank Essequibo (EBE) are the beneficiary of a reinforced concrete thoroughfare. It was previously a mud dam.
The project cost GY $21.7M with XL Engineering executing the work.
KINGSTON - The Ministry of Public Infrastructure (MPI) recently rehabilitated the Main Access to West Sideline Dam in Best Village, West Bank Demerara (WBD).
The contractor, XL Engineering, used crusher run material to upgrade the road, which was previously a mud dam.
Approximately 145 residential homes will benefit from the 351 meters improved thoroughfare.
The project falls under the Miscellaneous Roads Programme.
KINGSTON - David Patterson, Minister of Public Infrastructure (MPI), is weighing his options to set up an escrow account, which will give the Ministry leverage to expedite the removal of utilities that encumber road projects.
He made this disclosure last Monday during a press conference when questioned about the delay in the Caribbean Development Bank funded Vreed-en-hoop to Hydronie road project, West Coast Demerara (WCD).
“It is a perennial issue the Ministry is battling…it plagued the East Bank and East Coast road projects and this one [Vreed-en-hoop to Hydronie] has fallen prey to that. It baffled me that the Ministry would have gone out to tender knowing these problems, yet continued to do so,” Minister Patterson told journalists.
Cognizant of the fact the utilities companies – Guyana Power and Light Inc. (GPL), Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI) and Guyana Telephone and Telegraph (Gtt) – are empowered by the laws of Guyana, the Minister intends to find a solution.
“We find great difficulty and sloth when they use our parapets which would have been done by the Ministry. When we ask them to relocate, we don’t ask them for free relocation,” Hon. Patterson stated.
The escrow account concept, the Minister added, has been discussed with officials from the companies during meetings.
“I have informed them during meetings….and I hope with the agreement of my colleagues at Cabinet that the time may come for us to probably charge a minimal fee to the utilities companies to put into an escrow account,” Hon. Patterson said.
He continued: “Should we need to proceed with road expansions, we would just have to take those funds out of the account without being subjected to the whims and fancies, and technical availabilities of the companies, to relocate.”
KINGSTON - The Maritime Administration Department (MARAD) of the Ministry of Public Infrastructure came in for praise from students and Head Teachers of four hinterland primary schools for an initiative undertaken to ensure safety on the waterways.
MARAD has embarked on an initiative to distribute life jackets to primary school students throughout the country who reside in riverain communities and their only means of access to school is by boat.
On Thursday last, the MARD distributed 130 life jackets to Batavia Primary School, 35 to Kartabo Primary, nine to Makouria Primary and 35 to the Holy Name Primary School.
Akosua Mc Pherson, MARAD’s Public Communications Officer, indicated that her department is concerned with safety on the waterways. She noted that children who traverse the water ways to get to school are vulnerable and as such the MARD decided to embark on the initiative to outfit those students with life jackets.
Volda Hastings, Head Mistress (HM) of Batavia Primary said, it will be a great help to children as most times the river is rough and that’s the only way for the children to come to school. Wanda Cox and Assistant Teacher of the same school believes that lifejackets are needed as children from the nursery school age use boats to come to school. This is a disaster waiting to happen as they are not outfitted with any safety measures, Cox noted.
Lorna Shanks, Head Teacher at Kartabo Primary, explained that the distribution exercise was a welcoming surprise as she did not expect to benefit from such an initiative. Pauline Williams, assistant mistress attached to the school said that most afternoons the river is rough and the children usually travel in packed boats which is a very scary sight for her. Now that they have life jackets, should anything happen, their lives will be saved, Williams opined.
Faye Hicks, the Head Teacher at Holy Name Primary School said, the initiative is good. “Most times students use the school boat daily without life jackets and they can now be safe, in the event of a mishap it will save their lives,” Hicks said.
Rhonda Jeffrey another teacher attached to the school said the initiative is important and is accepted with open arms since it provides a safe way for the children to come to school. Eva Mauchette believes the children will now be much safer on the water ways.
“We are living in the hinterland area. The fact that you are in Georgetown and could have done this says you are looking out for the children in the hinterland,” Mauchette said.
Recently a number of speed-boat operators plying the Parika-Bartica route received first aid training, compliments of the Maritime Administration Department. That initiative forms part of a structured plan of comprehensive efforts to ensure that lives can be saved in the event of a mishap on the rivers.
KINGSTON - The Government of Guyana, through the Public Infrastructure Ministry, is slated to spend over $220 million on the upgrade and repairs of ferries, which ply various routes across the country.
This announcement was made by Minister within the Public Infrastructure Ministry, Annette Ferguson during a media briefing on Monday last.
The Minister explained that the MV Lady Northcote will dock this month for emergency repairs at an estimated cost of $70 million.
The Lady Northcote, which plies the Georgetown-Port Kaituma route, is 77 years old, making it the oldest vessel of the Transport and Harbour Department (T&HD) fleet.
The ferry was docked for about two weeks after it caught fire while on its way to Georgetown from the North West in March 2012. Based on reports, the fire was said to have been caused by an oil leak in its engine room. Following this incident, engineers worked speedily on repairs to the vessel and within 20 days it was operational again.
Furthermore, Minister Ferguson explained that the T&HD will also be docking the MV Sandaka, MV Barima and the MV Kimbia for repairs.
“These repairs are estimated to be 150 million Guyana dollars and the vessels will be docked during the period of September to December 2015.”
The MV Kimbia is a passenger and cargo vessel that has the capacity to transport 200 persons. It is said to be one of the oldest vessels in the maritime public transport system and has served the T&HD for more than 70 years. The vessel had undergone repairs in the Vieira dry dock facility located at Houston, Greater Georgetown in 2009.
A sum of $35 million in capital expenditure was budgeted for repairs on the vessel, but instead a $53 million contract was signed. During the initial repair works, additional problems were revealed and another $30 million of work had to be done. The MV Kimbia was docked again in 2013, at the Guyana National Industrial Corporation (GNIC), where it spent several months undergoing meticulous repairs. A $118 million contract was signed for the vessel to be docked at the GNIC facility.
Former President Donald Ramotar had negotiated an agreement with India to have concessional credit to purchase a passenger ferry to help Guyana overcome transportation problems in the northern region. I n addition, the former Administration obtained financial aid from China, a sum of US$14.4 million to procure two new vessels in January 2012, the Sabanto and the Kanawan. These ferries have enhanced accommodation features and greater seating capacity. They are currently operational in the Essequibo River.
The dispensing of funds comes at a time where the Government is seeking to revamp the T&HD. However, much works remain to be done on the various stellings especially Vreed-en-Hoop’s, which continues to be the disgust of passengers. (Guyana Times)
KINGSTON - Corrective works to the East Bank Berbice (EBB) road will be completed by September 14, 2015.
A joint site visit was done on the East Bank Berbice Roadway on September 7, 2015 between representatives from the Ministry of Public Infrastructure and representatives from H. Nauth & Sons to determine the exact scope of the corrective works to be done.
This project comprise mainly of 12 kilometers of asphalt overlay with sectional rehabilitation.
Among the major corrective works being addressed were some areas where the thickness of the asphalt surface was below the required thickness and the compaction was less than that required in some sections.
KINGSTON - Representatives of the Berbice Chambers of Commerce and Industry have lauded the firm stand taken by the Minister of Public Infrastructure to hold contracting firm H. Nauth & Sons accountable for the defects found on a 12 kilometer stretch of the East Bank Berbice Road.
Representatives from the Chambers which included the Upper Corentyne Chambers of Commerce & Industry (UCCCI); West Berbice Chamber of Industry & Commerce (WBCIC); Central Corentyne Chamber of Commerce (CCCC) and Berbice Chamber of Commerce and Development Association (BCC&DA) indicated that should all ministers do likewise, a higher standard of works would be realised.
“If we don’t draw a line we will keep getting substandard works. If contracts were administered correctly things would go better. Work should not be awarded based on low tenders, this had led to substandard and delayed works” Mr. Rafeek, one of the representatives opined.
The representatives suggested that when engineers are preparing estimates for projects in Berbice, they should factor in the cost of transporting materials to the area as this would have an impact on the overall cost of the project.
Patterson noted that sometimes things were not being done in accordance with the Procurement Act. He said the Act empowers the procuring agency to object to a contractor’s estimates and his ministry will now have to make objections if they find the need to so do.
H. Nauth & Sons Construction Company has been given seven days by the Ministry to complete corrective works to the East Bank Berbice road.
This no-nonsense approach taken by the Ministry will apply to all projects.
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) will be providing funds to have the entire East Bank Berbice Road completed to its new standard which means that sidewalks and road signage will be included.
