Rehabilitation work on the Mocha/ Arcadia bridge at Nelson Street, the main access bridge to the community, is expected to commence in a matter of days.
The bridge will be constructed under the supervision of the Ministry of Public Infrastructure (MPI) and the Mocha/ Arcadia Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC).
MPI’s Public Relations Officer, Desilon Daniels, told Stabroek News that the commencement of the rehabilitation was stalled due to a delay in the procurement process.
The contract was awarded a few days ago to Ivor Allen, and work will commence in the new week or soon after, when the contractor has mobilized the necessary equipment, she noted.
The bridge, which has been closed to vehicular traffic for at least four months, is still being traversed by pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists. Several of the decking planks of the bridge are either broken or out of place.
Chairman of the NDC Rudolph Adams had previously told Stabroek News that they had approached the ministry through the Regional Democratic Council to undertake the work, since the NDC did not have the resources to carry out the work.
“The bridge falls under our NDC, but we do not have the resources, and so we approached the regional body [Regional Democratic Council], the Ministries of Communities and Public Infrastructure. And at the regional level, a decision was made that the Public Infrastructure Ministry would take on the work,” he had told this publication, at the time.
Residents are also calling for rehabilitation works to be carried out on the bridge which is currently being used. They noted that the bridge is slowly deteriorating due to the high volume of traffic that frequently traverses the bridge.
