MINISTER of Public Infrastructure, David Patterson, has conceded that the main access bridge at Bagotville, West Bank Demerara, is in crisis and in urgent need of repairs.
During an interview with the National Communications Network (NCN), which was broadcast on the company’s Facebook page, Patterson gave as the reason for the bridge being in the state it is in, the inordinate number of heavy-duty vehicles that traverse it every day.
“The alternative bridge which commuters use is also being threatened, so the broken one needs to be repaired as soon as possible,” Minister Patterson said.
The minister is expected to meet with the community’s Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC), the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) of Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara) and other stakeholders during this week.
He said that while it is an emergency, they need to get the finances in place so that work can commence soon.
The ministry is nonetheless hoping that work can commence within a week, so that it can be completed by September, Minister Patterson said.
Residents told the Guyana Chronicle on Sunday that the bridge has been broken for days, and that the situation is hampering progress in the area.
A market vendor from the neighbouring village of Nismes said since the bridge has been hobbled, he’s been having a hard time getting his produce to the market at Bagotville.
“Because the bridge is broken, trucks do not get to move freely, so drivers are forced to choose the longer route which connects Bagotville to Dairy,” the vendor said.
But even the alternative route is in a deplorable state, so residents are calling on the government to assist them as soon as possible with fixing that bridge as well.
Persons say that although the bridge has been in “a terrible state” for the longest while, the NDC has been making no effort to have it repaired.
Efforts to contact a councillor of the NDC has proven futile.