It may become necessary to initiate a lengthy closure of the Demerara Harbour Bridge in order to execute vital maintenance works by the end of August.
There is a proposal for the bridge to be closed for approximately three to five days.
Addressing a small gathering yesterday during the commissioning of the bridge partnership with GTT Mobile Money, Minister of Public Works Juan Edghill said repairs are required for the sustainability of the bridge for the next few years.
He explained that money was allocated for repairs to spans nine and 10 but following an assessment it has been decided that the span nine needs to be replaced.
“All that needs to be done to span 10 has been completed. The new span nine has been built off site because it was so badly damaged you couldn’t weld and repair and so on. So this is the dilemma that we have. We have to take out span nine and put in the new span nine…” the Minister informed before explaining further that the works will require the operations of the bridge to be closed to commuters for several days.
Demerara Harbour Bridge Corporation General Manager, Wayne Watson on the sidelines of the event related that the lengthy closure – which could be as much as five days – is due to the technical works required.
“…because of the intricacies of the bridge, you have the acceptor span that has to be disconnected, you have electrical components that have to be disconnected, there are electro-mechanical components, buoys and pontoons [which] have to be disconnected. We also have to replace the pontoons supporting the existing span nine. So the entire technical work required to replace the span will be a day and night operation.”
The replacement span is currently being constructed at a dry dock wharf in Friendship, East Bank Demerara, and will be floated into the area when works commence.
Edghill however cautioned commuters to not panic as they are working out alternative arrangements to facilitate the movement of people during the temporary closure.
The minister announced that apart from water taxis working on a 24-hour basis, they are looking at alternative routes to facilitate river crossing for vehicles.
On this note Watson stated that they are currently reviewing proposals from companies to shuttle vehicles across the river from two locations. The locations being looked at are Caledonia, and Mohammed’s Enterprise Quarry Wharf at Providence, East Bank Demerara. Transport from both locations will dock at Nismes, West Bank Demerara.
The General Manager added that in the proposal, the wharf set up at Caledonia will be utilised by trucks and large vehicles, while smaller vehicles will cross at Providence.
“We will make a public announcement as to when that operation will take place. To facilitate that short-term operation, we have studied and we will put initiatives in place. There is no need for panic… Cars, trucks and vehicles can possibly cross from two locations on both sides of the river on a 24-hour basis,” the minister assured.
Repairs to the bridge on spans nine and ten are pegged at some $1.2 billion.
Once all approvals are given by Cabinet and the bridge’s Board of Directors, the company will begin works. It is anticipated that these will be undertaken soon and should be completed by August.
Earlier this year, Watson had said that they would be engaged in several hours-long closures to conduct major rehabilitation of spans nine and ten.
According to the work schedule, the bridge company was expected to engage 16 six-hour-long closures to execute corrective works.
Apart from major rehabilitation works, the company last month began piloting a night system to execute critical maintenance work.
Watson in a telephone interview had told Stabroek News that from 10 pm to 6 am daily, they will be closing off one lane of traffic to commuters to facilitate the maintenance works.
He explained that the works will be carried out on the decking plates supporting structures and other parts of the bridge.
While noting that they are working as swiftly as they can to minimise delays on the 44-year old bridge, he is pleading with commuters to proceed with caution at night and follow the necessary instructions to guide them while traversing the bridge.
Watson emphasised that the works on the bridge are much needed and if it is going to see continued use over the next few years, it is integral that maintenance works be undertaken.
He noted that in some instances they have been trying to merge bridge closures with scheduled maintenance at nights. This, Watson said, minimises the impact on traffic during the course of the day. However, he explained that in some cases they are required to close the bridge to vehicular traffic since some vessels or tugs and barges cannot cross at night.
