–as works progress along East Bank Demerara corridor

THE Government of Guyana is aggressively pursuing the construction and rehabilitation of massive thoroughfares across the country, and works have been progressing along the East Bank Demerara (EBD) corridor to alleviate traffic woes and enhance interconnectivity.
“We will have 20 lanes of interconnecting highways between the East Bank highway, the Heroes Highway going all the way beyond Buzz Bee Dam and then connecting to Ogle,” President, Dr Irfaan Ali said as he inspected the ongoing construction works on Thursday.
Works are currently being done on the Massy to Greenfield roads. In addition to this, works are simultaneously being done on several roads in the Diamond community.
“20 lanes of highway …imagine that type of interconnectivity we are talking about and that is all four-lane highway standards,” the Head of State added.

Recently, the Eccles to Great Diamond Highway along the EBD corridor was commissioned and named the Heroes Highway in honour of the five long-standing servicemen who lost their lives in a tragic helicopter crash.
That new road will eventually serve as a critical component of transport infrastructure that links Essequibo, Berbice and Demerara.
President, Dr Irfaan Ali had emphasised that Guyana is heading in the direction of ensuring that safety on the roadways is being met through state-of-the-art technologies.
The President also revealed that by 2027, most of the nation’s infrastructural works will be done by Guyanese, owing to the local contracting pool being developed.

The People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) government included a four-lane highway from Georgetown to Timehri in its 2020-2025 manifesto under the heading, “Infrastructure Boom: Building for the Future.”
The party gave its commitment that it will revolutionise the outdated infrastructure in Guyana and initiate work on several transformative infrastructural projects, all in order to provide a flourishing economy.
With an investment of some $25.2 billion, over 23 kilometres of concrete roads and asphaltic highways have been completed since the government assumed office in August 2020.

Among these projects are the Eccles to Great Diamond Interlink Road, Mandela Avenue to Eccles four-lane highway, Heroes Highway (Eccles to Great Diamond four-lane highway), Great Diamond extension four-lane road, and the Eccles Industrial Road.
These crucial road projects promise increased accessibility, connectivity, and socio-economic opportunities for both residents and business owners.
Just last week, Guyana’s Vice President, Dr Bharrat Jagdeo told reporters at a news conference that over 300 bridges and structures were being constructed in an effort to better the lives of commuters across the country.
Works spanning Regions Three, Four and Six he said are already underway.

“On the Mahaica to Georgetown highway it’s about 39 kilometres of [road] and 118 structures that would have to be built and widened, [in] Berbice, 60 kilometres have been awarded and you have 99 structures,” Dr Jagdeo said.
Meanwhile at Ogle, where a contract has been awarded to construct 11.2 kilometres of road, there are 40 structures.

Other major projects include the Mandela to Buzz Bee Dam project where some 22 kilometres of road is under construction. The works include a connecting road that leads out to the main highway in that area and some 50 structures.
In Region Three, works are underway on some eight kilometres of road from Crane to the Demerara Harbour Bridge. There some six structure are being constructed, Dr. Jagdeo said.
“On those alone we are going to be doing 312 bridges and structures that are already under implementation and 140 kilometres of four-lane roads,” he said.