After months of proprietary works: Construction commences on Ogle-Eccles 4-lane highway

…as Govt aims to meet October deadline

Construction works on the US$106.4 million Ogle-Eccles four-lane Highway, which will link the East Coast of Demerara (ECD) to the East Bank of Demerara (EBD) commenced on Monday and already, the government is eyeing the project completion by October.
The four-lane highway is being built from the intersection of the Ogle Airstrip Road and the Rupert Craig Highway on the ECD towards Haags Bosch in Eccles, on the EBD.
The 7.8-kilometre road, which was contracted to Ashoka Buildcon, will feature a roundabout that will connect the highway and the Railway Embankment, which is also being expanded.
Public Works Minister Juan Edghill has disclosed that the new thoroughfare will develop the country’s infrastructure and open up land to meet the needs of the agriculture, housing, and oil and gas sectors.

He added that the project which is slated to be completed by October of this year will also be a new road artery that links the Eugene F. Correia International Airport with the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA).
“This is a major intervention that will cause people moving between the East Bank and the East Coast to bypass the entire Georgetown traffic, reduce travel time, make people’s lives much easier, great accessibility, all the things that go with our improvement that have been started out. It’s just a matter of implementing it now… And you would have noticed as well that the connector road at Haags Bosch which is in the Eccles area we were connecting with two lanes but we have since expanded that project to four lanes because of the volume of traffic that we are noticing, so that’s a significant improvement,” Edghill disclosed.
To ensure the smooth flow of traffic, upgrades will be made to Ogle Old Road, Industry Road, and Victoria Road in Plaisance.
These upgrades will include the removal of encumbrances from the parapets and the clearing of road shoulders.
Additionally, road users traveling from Rupert Craig Road to Ogle Airstrip Road from Georgetown will need to use UG Road to connect with Embankment Road while road users coming from Mahaica to the Airstrip Road will use Better Hope and connect with Embankment Road.
Concerning heavy-laden trucks, those heading east will be required to enter and exit the Railway Embankment at UG Road, while those heading west will enter and exit at the Vryheid’s Lust main road. Police, along with traffic marshals from the contractor, will be on site to provide directions at detours.
Edghill said residents and businesses within the vicinity project have been engaged and have agreed to these terms.
“The residents have been engaged more than two months ago and they’ve all agreed. There are continuously planning on how they will access their homes. As a matter of fact, work has been going on in the area where the residents live on both sides and now, we reach the stage where we have to come to the middle which is the old road and that’s why we’re closing for the period… The section that is being closed for work is from the Rupert Craig Highway to the railway embankment. Work has been ongoing in the entire stretch and it’s one of the projects that is on schedule and we don’t want to delay it,” he explained.
The Ministry of Public Works (MoPW) is appealing for cooperation from all motorists during this period while reminding that these works are part of the government’s ongoing commitment to improving infrastructure and ensuring the safety and efficiency of the nation’s roadways.
In June, President, Dr. Irfaan Ali has inspected proprietary works. At the time the head of state has engaged with the contractor and technical officers from the Public Works Ministry.
During that engagement, the president had emphasised the importance of ensuring there is greater connectivity with the establishment of these road networks. (G1)