Finance Minister Satisfied with Road Works on Anegada

Heavy equipment being used to prepare a new section of road on Anegada for paving. Minister of Finance Honourable Ralph T. O’Neal, OBE, accompanied by several government officials and the Project Manager on Tuesday visited the various sections of road being paved as part of the current road improvement project on Anegada. Photo Credit: Mr. Doron Hodge/GIS

The minister accompanied by officials of the Public Works Department on Tuesday toured the five sections of road being constructed and paved under the Anegada Road Improvement Project.

“I was very pleased with what I saw and I understand from the Chief Engineer in the Public Works Department that the quality of the work is to his satisfaction. Indeed it is a pleasure to see the men working to get the road finished,” the finance minister said.

Honourable O’Neal confirmed Government’s commitment to continue with road development on Anegada in the near future. “We hope that early next year we will be able to continue in both directions east and west so that we can open up more lands in Anegada,” he said.

The minister who also has responsibility for tourism cited a good road network as an important factor in developing the Territory’s tourism industry. “In the case of Anegada, especially, we are looking at the potential for development of the hotel and yachting industries, it is essential that they have good roads,” Honourable O’Neal said.

He added, “We feel that as the roads develop, more people will want to come and more Anegadians will want to get involved in building villas, guest houses and other business places to supply local demands and the tourist trade.”

Acting Director of the Public Works Department Dr. Drexel Glasgow echoed the Minister of Finance’s sentiments saying he is impressed with what he saw during Tuesday’s site visit. “We said at the outset that we wanted to make sure the project moved swiftly, make sure that all the contractors were ready to go so once the concrete supplier was ready there would be no hold up, and I must say we have achieved quite a bit, the roads are looking good and the quality is very good,” Dr. Glasgow said. ~~Adz:Right~~

The project entails the widening of some road sections from 10-feet to 20-feet and the construction of new road sections.

Project Manager Mr. Daniel Cline told the Department of Information and Public Relations the project is progressing on schedule. “We are moving in the right direction; we have made good progress, the contractors have been cooperating and I must say it is a real improvement for Anegada and we look forward to doing a lot more,” Mr. Cline said.

He added, “We have finished most of the work going towards Loblolly and about half of it towards Setting Point, extending the road on the other side so now we have a full 20-foot road.”

Paving of the new 3,552 feet of road leading to Pomato Point in the west began on Monday and the entire project should be completed by the Christmas season. The project also includes the paving of the area near the dock and the road leading to the Emile Dunlop Community Centre.

Government signed two major contracts collectively worth $1,288,651 with Anegada Concrete Products Limited and Tortola Concrete Products Limited in October for the provision of 4,803 cubic yards of ready-mix concrete for the project. Several other contractors have been employed to facilitate the road improvement work.

The overall project will see the improvement of five sections of road on Anegada totalling 12,296 feet. The project is in keeping with Government’s commitment to the modernisation and expansion of the network of roads throughout the Territory, including the sister islands.