The Demerara Habour Bridge will have to remain in operation for at least the next six years and the pre-feasibility study to choose the best location for a new bridge is scheduled to be completed in June, Transport Minister Robeson Benn told the National Assembly during his Budget debate presentation last evening.
“We anticipate that the bridge has to remain in serviceability at least for the next six to seven years before a new bridge will come into play”, he said while noting that the $300M which has been provided in this year’s budget is for its continued maintenance.
He informed the House that presently the options bring looked at for the new bridge are at the Versailles/ Houston access; the Schoonard/Peter’s Hall access and the Patentia/New Hope access.
In noting the delays and rescheduling of activities caused by the “confusion engendered by the budgetary exercise of last year”, he called on the opposition to embrace the 2013 budget which was presented in the National Assembly last Monday.
Benn addressed several aspects of works undertaken by this ministry including the Demerara Habour Bridge. He told the House that for last year some $268M was spent on capital works which included works on the fabrication of buoys and pontoons and the supply of wire ropes.
He said that there was also the replacement of ropes for anchorage to the tune of $178M; connection posts, $38M, buoys $21M, deck plates and other ongoing activities $466M. He also made mention of the retractor hydraulic ramp which he described as a “major exercise of the habour bridge”.
According to Benn, the bridge has seen a 6.5% increase over 2011 in terms of traffic and the daily average traffic has moved from 7553 vehicles per day to 8010. Additionally marine traffic has increased from a total of 1152 transits in 2011 to 1219 in 2012, a difference of 5.8%. Benn stated that at (the end of) 2011 there was a total expenditure of 348.5M; in 2012 the figure was $347M.
He explained that the total income in 2011 was $422M while in 2012 it increased to $432M. This, he said meant that at the end of 2012 there was a surplus of $85M.
Benn mentioned the July 23 disruptions at the bridge which resulted in it being closed to vehicular traffic for two days during which work was being done on the spams.
The minister made mention of a number of road and bridge projects being undertaken with international partners and give an in-depth report into the progress of each. Among them are the East and West Canje roads (19.5 km at a cost of US$9M); Black Bush Polder Road (34 km costing US$6.7M) and the first section of the access road to the International Airport (3.5 km costing US$1.62M).
Additionally he said the four-lane East Bank expansion is progressing in spite of delays due to the relocation of utilities. According to Benn a date of May 2013 was being looked at but with the delays that might not be possible. One of the issues with the road he added is the six months settling time that comes with the installation of vertical drains.
The four-lane upgrade on the East Coast Demerara, Benn said is 25% completed while nothing that the construction work on the Amaila Falls Road is being undertaken by several contractors and is scheduled to be completed this year. He noted that there are issues though with the availability of materials for the construction of the road.
He also informed the House of rehabilitation works being done on several hinterland bridges and roads including the one from Lethem to Linden which he described as a very necessary project. According to Benn, it will see the “development, the advancement of Linden, not only for the bauxite and timber exports and the Linden area but also for north/east Brazil” and despite the heckling from the opposition said that Linden will benefit from such a project.
The minister noted quite a lot of emphasis has been placed by the government to safety on the roads and he singled out the police with the use of their radar guns and the installation of infrastructure among them traffic lights.
Benn expressed displeasure with what he described as “an undisguised attack on the private sector”, by the opposition. “I am surprised to note that statements are being made which suggests that the budget openly supports the business sector…” he said while nothing that the private sector has been partners in a number of key projects including Ogle Airport Inc. and the Berbice Bridge.
“I would be very unhappy, and I think that we need a definitive statement from the opposition benches as to whether they do support a public/private partnership as one of the pillars which should move Guyana’s development forward”, he said amidst the banging of the tables by other government MPs.
Benn thanked the Finance Minister for delivering an “exemplary budget” while noting that the way is being paved for a new generation of Guyanese to have solid things to build on. “Solid infrastructure to build on, solid sea defences to build on, solid roads to build on. We are building anew in Guyana. We have gone past the phase of rehabilitation”, he said.
Nothing for the poor
Meanwhile APNU MP Keith Scott in adding his voice to the debate said that this year’s budget has nothing in it for the poor. “The rich get richer and the poor get poorer” he said.
He spoke of the underpaying of teachers and the high prices of house lots. “We ought to be in a position to give away free land”, Scott said. He said that locals are being asked to pay inflated prices when compared with the overseas-based Guyanese.
Turning his attention to Guysuco he said that APNU will never “support the incompetence” of this sector nor be fooled by the charade being presented that sugar workers are being properly looked at. He said that money cannot be pumped into an entity that has been continuously failing.
According to Scott there was a time when the country’s major parties shared a dream of a tri-sectorial economy.
He said that this year’s budget favours the private sector at the expense of the majority of citizens adding that all were waiting to hear about VAT or an increase in the minimum wage among other things. “They get nothing while the better off are smiling all the way”, he said.
The MP made mention of the $2500 “top up” received by senior citizens and the disappointment of the public service workers including teachers.
According to Scott, during his presentation Singh said that gold production was at a high and more jobs have been created but the rivers tell a story about the effects that this is having on the environment. He also mentioned the gastro outbreak in the North West as a result of contaminated river water.
“This Finance Minister is a magician…He is a master of illusion”, he said.
With respect to GPL, he said that the entity is incompetent. He said that poor management has been identified as one of the causes of poor performance nothing that with all of the issues government has allocated $11B to the power company. He spoke also of the poor water quality and inadequate supply to residents especially those on the coast.
Scott’s presentation was hit by two blackouts which the House was later told was due to a GPL breaker problem.
