Land for MoBay bypass to cost $13m
WESTERN BUREAU — The Jamaican Government will have to find just over $13-million for land acquisiton for the US$80-million (J$4 billion) Montego Bay bypass being built by the Construction Industry Development Board of Malaysia.
The toll road will go through several high density communities, but it is not yet clear just how many structures will be affected,
According to executive director of the National Works Agency, Ivan Anderson, the bypass will start at the upscale Ironshore community, go through the heavily populated areas of Salt Spring, Greenpond, and Porto Bello, then exit at Westgate.
He was speaking at a press briefing last Friday, after concerns were raised that the route selected might not be the best option, and that the bypass itself might not be the optimal way to reduce traffic congestion.
Anderson indicated that there was still time to work out the details for the route as it is not yet finalised and still subject to adjustments.
“It (the route) is not cast in stone, nothing is even written down yet,” Anderson added.
There have also been concerns raised about the viability of the toll road, but the NWA boss told reporters that the bypass would go ahead regardless of the viability of the toll system.
He said a traffic study will be undertaken in the Montego Bay area later this month, to be followed by an environmental assessment study.
The preliminary design and costing is to begin in November, work will begin on the 11.9 kilometre toll road one year later and should last for two years. Randill, a company also from Malaysia, will undertake the designs.
The four-lane bypass is expected to be built to the highest international standards and will be fitted with fly-overs, and six intersections.
The Malaysian Government will provide roughly 75 per cent of the money for the project, under the terms of a letter of intent signed with the Jamaican Government last month.
The city’s business leaders on Friday welcomed the decision to begin work on the project that is seen as the answer to the congestion on the streets of the tourist resort town. They anticipate that it will translate into economic spinoffs.
“The Montego Bay Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MBCCI) gives the project one hundred per cent support. We have been advocating for this bypass road for many, many years and we are extremely grateful to see that it has come to this stage and that there is a commitment for government to have it built,” Chamber president Mark Kerr-Jarrett said.
He was speaking with the Observer after Anderson’s presentation.
“The project is really going to create tremendous development opportunities and it is now up to the private sector to respond to the infrastructure and do the secondary development,” Kerr-Jarrett added.
He was among the group of Montego Bay businessmen who had gathered at the Ritz Carlton Hotel to hear about plans for the project.
The business sector has long argued that the city of Montego Bay had become too congested and has on numerous occasions called for ways to be found to divert traffic around the city centre.
Many argued that if a bypass were built, apart from easing the traffic congestion, the highway would serve as a catalyst for further economic development.
“Once you give vehicular access to an area it opens it up for development. This bypass road would open up development in areas such as Green Pond, Salt Spring and it will open up Montego Bay south even more for city expansion and commerce and industry,” Kerr -Jarrett argued.
Businessman Winston Dear, who was also present at the meeting, argued that the bypass was a necessity especially at a time when the cruise ship industry is expanding. He maintained that the bypass would minimise the long delays it is now taking to get in and out of the city.