Dear Editor,
I have just returned from Guyana to New York. I stayed at a house at Better Hope facing the East Coast Road.
By the sheer volume of traffic and speed of these vehicles this road performs the function of a US interstate highway, but it was not designed to function as a highway. Since houses are on both sides of the road and the road is used for stopping and picking up at will, and it is also used by horse-carts, bicycles, cows, donkeys and pedestrians, then how can it also at the same time perform the function of a highway? In other words a village or country road (not supposed to exceed 30 mph) is being used as a highway.
Guyana has entered the automobile age, approaching one car per household. Give it another few years and it will get even worse. It’s absolutely frightening. Auto accidents and fatalities will increase exponentially.
The Guyana government has got to begin long-term planning and execution: ie, begin to design and build highways. Highways are not for stopping; you must first exit to the service road, slow down, then stop. No donkeys and cows and bicycles. Houses cannot be located alongside and jut out onto a highway.
Guyana’s coastal villages over the last 150 years were developed on the homesteading principle: Build a house anywhere far apart, then the red, burnt-clay, dusty road was put in (a village road – few cars existed), then today, lo and behold! the automobile age descended on us and the village road is expected to perform the function of a highway.
It is a disaster.
Yours faithfully,
Mike Persaud