BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – IN an effort to ease the traffic congestion which tends to occur at the foot of Upper College Street, the Police Traffic Department has announced that the bus stop situated there would soon be relocated.
Speaking at a meeting with members of the St. Peter’s Bus Association, Head of the Traffic Department Inspector Cromwell Henry broached the idea earlier this week explaining that sometime ago the current system was implemented but as difficulties were experienced the change has become necessary.
He explained that the current system dictates that busses wishing to transport passengers to the St. Peters area would have to queue on the eastern side of the road with one omnibus on the opposite side collecting passengers. Whenever that bus on the western side of the road leaves, he further explained, the bus at the front of the queue would take up that position and collect passengers.
The Traffic Head noted that the width of the road in the area of the bus stop is of particular concern with the current system. He stated that it could not adequately accommodate two lanes of traffic in addition to the eastern queue and western collection area. Henry expressed that a number of the bus drivers’ refusal to adhere to the system exacerbates that problem.
“That system began to work or only worked when there is an officer in the Ghaut. As long as there is no police officer or traffic warden in the Ghaut, you have all the busses down in the corner. Some across the road, some on the no waiting sign, some on the stop sign and the whole Ghaut is blocked.
“We cannot have a traffic warden or police officer at the Ghaut at all times, and so we thought that if we shift where the busses park a little, it would give everyone more room to manoeuvre. We thought that if we put you in a wider area of the Ghaut, you would have move busses on the western side facing up and you would have more space to turn around and traffic flowing into town would have more space to pass through. The short of it is that you would have less obstruction in the Ghaut if persons do what they ought to do.”
The Traffic Department is proposing that the bus stop be shifted several meters to the north (farther up College Street Ghaut) which is expected to ease traffic congestion. Henry noted that the shift would effect a slight change in the current system for that area. He also noted that although the move would mean that passengers would have to walk a longer distance to board a bus, he does not foresee it as being problematic.
“The present system would remain but we are proposing that rather going as close are you are to Cayon Street, we move you further back…as far back as the empty land by the hairdressing salon. There is a very convenient light right there. So we won’t have much to do in terms of lighting the area. It’s more lighted that where you are presently. There is a lamppost right opposite the empty piece of light. We are proposing to move the area where the busses would wait up to as far as that empty land.
“So we would have two busses, maybe three on that side facing up while the others wait on the eastern side facing down. The system would work the same. Whenever a bus moves out from the waiting area on the eastern side then one would turn around and go over while the others move down on the eastern side. That is what we are proposing.”
While most of the bus owners and operators agreed with the move, questions were raised concerning the security risk associated with that area compared to the present one, as well as the possibility of installing additional lighting; issues which Henry pledged to look into.
The move could take place as early as next month and must be done before the 2009 Christmas/Carnival season is in full swing.
“…we would move into that for Christmas, hopefully before Christmas so that we won’t have the kind of congestion for Carnival as we normally have. Christmas is usually where we have a lot of congestion in town and whatever we could do eliminate congestion, we would want to do it before Christmas because it’s bad now, it could get worse for Christmas.”
