AS part of the 2017 National Budget, a sum of $30M has been green-lighted for the construction of scale houses at three locations across the country.Scale houses, also known as Weigh Stations are buildings equipped with truck scales, some of which weigh in motion and permit the trucks to continue moving while being weighed, while older scales require the trucks to stop. There are a variety of scales employed from single axle scales to multi-axle sets.

In the National Assembly on Wednesday, Minister of Public Infrastructure, David Patterson noted during the consideration of estimates in the Committee of Supply that the sum allocated is part of a $190M sum for government buildings.

Patterson said that the exact location for the three structures has not been determined. However, he hinted that they will “most likely” be placed along the Soesdyke/Linden Highway or the Linden/Lethem Road. He said the Ministry of Public Infrastructure is investigating best possible impact locations. “We are narrowing them down,” he noted.

According to Patterson, the aim of the ministry is to monitor the weight of vehicles on the country’s roads. According to him, vehicles such as trucks traversing the roads accelerate damage to the roads across the country and persons who are found afoul of the law will be liable to pay applicable penalties. He said that legislation to this effect will be enacted regarding the latter.