Dear Editor,
In an article which appeared in the news media on September 30 on the East Bank road overpasses, it was reported that the Ministry of Public Infrastructure (MPI) under Minister Patterson had awarded a contract for ten elevators attached to five overpasses located at various locations along the East Bank Demerara Roadway. Contracts were also awarded for construction of five overpasses.
The elevators were supplied by a Swedish manufacturer through its Trinidadian agent while construction of the overpasses was awarded to local contractors. No information was given on inspection of the equipment during installation nor supervision of construction of the overpasses to ensure that the work met specifications. The project should have been completed by June 2018 but as of September 2019 only one of the overpasses has been working but with ‘teething’ problems.
This project is evidently in a mess as apparently the elevators have been installed but the overpasses are in various stages of completion. It was stated that the elevators have a one-year warranty period but it was not clear when or if the warranty period has commenced since this will determine which party is responsible for theft and vandalism of the equipment which have occurred. It was further stated that a quarterly maintenance package was bought for the elevators. Does this mean that every three months the elevators will be inspected and serviced or repairs to them will be carried out whenever breakdowns occur as it is not unusual for elevators to break down between service intervals?
Elevators are complex and costly equipment to operate and maintain in accordance with set standards particularly when they are exposed to the elements. The technicians who
service and maintain them have to be trained and licensed. Critical spares have to be kept in stock for quick replacement to prevent serious incidents from occurring like people being trapped in them for long periods.
The installation of elevators on overpasses along the East Bank will prove to be a tragic and costly error of judgement by Minister Patterson for several reasons. Firstly, elevators are complex equipment which require skilled technicians which Guyana does not have to service them. Secondly, solar energy to power the elevators could be erratic because of battery storage and other factors. If the electricity is supplied by GPL this could be problematic also because of regular blackouts to users. Thirdly, the overpasses will have to be provided with 24/7 security as the level of thefts and vandalism of unguarded equipment by some segments of the society could be overwhelming as was evidenced by what happened at the Moco Moco and Tumatumari hydropower plants as well as the recently installed elevators.
Yours faithfully,
Charles Sohan
