Residents of Herstelling Housing Scheme on the East Bank Demerara are calling on the relevant authorities to address concerns that they have been raising for well over four years now.
For years, residents in the area have been demanding that repairs be done to the road which they say is a travesty and has been causing severe hardships for motorists.
Speaking with Stabroek News yesterday, a resident who gave his name as ‘Rocky’, said that the roads were built with loam, mud and sometimes crusher run and that when it rains the road is an absolute mess. He opined that the roads were not done “up to standard” hence the fast deterioration. He added that a lot of heavy duty trucks do not traverse the roads so that cannot be blamed for the poor state of the road.
Another resident, who declined to be identified, said that a survey was done on the road three months ago, but so far nothing else has been done. He said that the last time the road was done was years ago when the Sugar Industry Labour Welfare Fund did it, but since it was transferred to the Herstelling Local Authorities, nothing has been done.
Residents also called on the relevant authorities to install street lights in the area since they said that they were forced to put together money out of their own pockets to do so. “Since I living here they have never installed any street lights. The neighbourhood put money together to have these street lights here so that we can feel safe at nights,” one resident said.
Shawn Barrett said the condition of the roads is also causing flooding in the area. He said the culverts need a door or cover to monitor the heavy rainfall. He said the roads were also very low and should be made higher so as to ease their troubles.
In a letter published by Stabroek News on June 4, 2013, J Braithwaite, a resident of Herstelling had said that the entrance coming in and going out at the 4th bridge is filled with potholes and slush from the loam. He added that, the Re-migrant and Providence schemes have better roads, not loam, and no one is living there as yet.
Last Thursday, bus drivers in Sophia staged a protest against the potholed roads in the community. The roads, they said, were causing them to spend a lot of money to repair their vehicles on a monthly basis. Two men were arrested in the protest after they used a horse cart to block traffic along Dennis Street.
