West Ruimveldt residents say increased traffic through the area is making bad streets worse.
Residents singled out Hibiscus Drive and said that as a result of two large speed humps being placed along the southern end of Hunter Street, it is being used as an alternative route by Route 47 minibuses.
“…I mean I glad that they build the two speed humps ’cause them drivers does used to want to speed down that street there to catch the light if they going to the East Bank Highway or turning onto Mandela [Avenue]. But since the bumps they get slow down big time and traffic sometimes does build up from the junction straight to Front Road and them bus man and other drivers that driving Back Road does cut through the corner before and use this [Hibiscus] street and now it bruk up, bruk up,” a resident, Ramesh Singh, told this newspaper last Friday.
Because of the constant traffic flowing through the street, the road and others have significantly deteriorated. As a result, during the rainy season, residents were forced to block the roads with a large log and old furniture to deter drivers from using them.
“Watch yourself and see how big them holes big. You can’t even say you got a piece of road anymore cause is the whole thing bruk up from one side to the next. When them man coming through they does got to drive slow, slow but it seems like they rather bruk up they vehicles and the road than wait in the life,” Singh added.
He explained that when it rains, the large holes are filled with water, which makes it difficult for persons to make a distinction between the road and gutters.
In addition to an increase in traffic flowing through Hibiscus Drive, Singh also pointed out that more traffic has been passing through other roads and streets in the community, which has resulted in other roads deteriorating.
“Sometimes is some big trucks with loads that does pass and obviously they gonna damage it more,” he said.
Stabroek News visited several other streets in the area that had several large potholes, some which spanned the entire street.
The residents also highlighted that the increase in traffic also makes it hazardous for children and others to safely traverse the roadways since vehicles often drive off of the road in a bid to avoid the holes.
“They got to fix the road and do it better so that it could handle the traffic that will be coming through ’cause nobody gonna want to wait in that line there. The traffic light does change quick and people can’t drive fast so you have to accept that,” Singh said.
In addition to repairing the roads, the man said that he is suggesting to the relevant authorities that the southern end of Hunter Street be turned into a one-way road to facilitate more traffic, considering the time it takes for the traffic light to allow the flow of vehicles over the junction and the amount of traffic typically on the road.
