THE Ministry of Housing and Water, under the Community Roads Improvement Programme (CRIP), rehabilitated and constructed several community roads on the East Coast of Demerara to the accumulative value of $94M.

The refurbished roads in Enterprise, Enmore and Good Hope, ECD have directly benefited 5,100 residents.

The contract for the project, awarded to GuyAmerica Construction Inc, included upgrading of Enterprise Sideline; First Cross Street (east) and Sideline (east) in Good Hope; and Pasture Dam in Enmore. CRIP is currently constructing roads in Betterverwagting and Enmore. These projects are expected to benefit another 700 residents.

The rehabilitated roads were all in deplorable condition, with potholes and depressions. The Works Ministry noted thus: “Today, (the roads) have smooth surfaces, with safety features such as road signs, speed humps and road markings installed. The importance of these roads to residents cannot be understated. Residents now have easier access to the main thoroughfare, health facilities, schools, places of worship, and businesses.”

Sixty-two-year-old Enmore, ECD resident Lucil Anthony explained that she was pleased that Pasture Dam now boasts a sturdy surface that could withstand rainy conditions. This road was formerly a dam that greatly inconvenienced those traversing it during the wet season, and residents were forced to use builders’ waste to fill its numerous potholes.

“Sometimes when it rains (the dam would) get slushy, school children couldn’t walk with their footwear. But this looks good, and I hope it lasts long…because I born and grow here, and now we get a proper road,” Anthony said.

She said Pasture Dam is also used to transport employees and goods of the Enmore Sugar Estate and Packaging Plant. She believes some of the trucks helped to deteriorate the dam’s surface, and she hopes that caution would be exercised when commuters use the road.

The residents of Enterprise told various accounts of their travails in using the road in times past. Those accounts were similar in their tales of inconvenience even though the residents did not have a mud structure. Those residents are now pleased that their travel from Enterprise to Non Pareil would no longer be interrupted by road defects.

According to a motorcyclist, “Playing dodge ball is the fitting description of how this road was before it repair…now I can ride my motorbike and don’t have to worry about riding in a pothole…I am happy the Ministry rehab this road…it got other roads in the community that need repairs.”

The CRIP is a multi-million-dollar road project being implemented by the Government of Guyana through the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development and the Ministry of Housing and Water. It is aimed at improving access to housing, education, health, and other social infrastructure through the improvement and upgrading of roads in existing housing schemes.