$20.74 billion set aside for Southern Coastal Highway Improvement Project
Published:Sunday | February 20, 2022 | 5:16 PM
The Government will be spending an additional $20.74 billion during the new fiscal year to continue carrying out activities under the Southern Coastal Highway Improvement Project.
The project seeks to improve the alignment and capacity of the existing southern coastal main arterial road so that it will be safe and efficient, free from flooding and provide for future development.
The money, which has been provided for in the 2022/2023 Estimates of Expenditure, will be used to, among other things, continue and complete designs; continue land acquisition activities to gain access to 100 per cent of necessary parcels along the May Pen to Williamsfield road alignment; and complete utilities relocation.
Construction works are also expected to be completed along various segments under the project: Harbour View to Yallahs Bridge; Yallahs Bridge to Port Antonio; and Morant Bay to Cedar Valley.
Up to December 2021, the design for the May Pen to Williamsfield segment was 95 per cent completed.
Five out of 15 pipeline contracts were completed, and five of 15 construction packages were awarded for the Harbour View to Yallahs Bridge and Morant Bay to Cedar Valley segments. In addition, the tender process for five of 15 construction packages were completed for these segments.
Works undertaken also included the completion of alignment and preliminary drone surveys, land acquisition sketch plans, and informal review of outline design for various segments under the project.
Southern Coastal Highway Improvement Project, which began in January 2017, is now slated to end in March 2025 following several extensions. It is being carried out by the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation, with funding from the Government of Jamaica and China Exim Bank.
- JIS News
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