THE ongoing negotiation between the Government of Guyana and the Berbice Bridge Company Incorporated (BBCI) is likely to be concluded soon with a mutually agreeable position being met.

Since the announcement of the budgetary measures which included reduction of tolls at the Berbice Bridge, the government and BBCI have been at loggerheads.

However, Minister of Governance Raphael Trotman said yesterday that the parties are now engaging in talks. “We are very optimistic that we will come to a mutually agreeable position,” Trotman told reporters at the Ministry of the Presidency.

And while at this stage it is not likely that an agreement will be concretised over the next 48 hours, it is expected that within the next few weeks, they “should be able to have it all worked out.”

$40M subvention

Just recently, the BBCI management disclosed that it would have submitted correspondence to the government accepting the proposed $40M subvention towards the reduction of the toll. In the correspondence, the bridge company made several proposals covering multiple aspects of the relationship between the BBCI and the administration.
In addition to the proposals made by the BBCI, the government had said that it was considering an offer by Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL) to sell its shares in the Berbice Bridge Company. DDL has offered to sell its shares for $45 million.

The BBCI had first rejected the government’s offer of financial support on the premise that its shareholders had not been consulted on the matter.

High tolls
The government, in an effort to relieve the travelling public from paying high tolls, implemented river taxis. This mode of transportation was far cheaper and very successful, resulting in thousands of people, including schoolchildren, utilising the boats.

The government’s proposal is to reduce the toll from $2,200 to $1,900 for passenger cars and buses, along with a 10 per cent reduction for other classes of vehicles. However, the bridge company will not lose, as the difference of the reduction will be borne by government.