Following the recent collapse of a section of Burnham Drive Road at Wismar, Linden, Regional Chairman Renis Morian made a call for a study to be conducted of the road which is one of the main thoroughfares in Wismar.
Remedial works to the collapsed section are being done by Linden contractor, Bella’s Contracting.
Works being done to a collapsed section of Burnham Drive
“We’ve noted that on Burnham Drive there is an increase in of traffic – you got more cars, and that is a road with schools, churches, mosque, market. So there’s more usage of the road. When we look at the high tides that we’re getting now, all that impacts on the road. I’ve made a call and I’m calling again for a study to be done”, the chairman said.
Morian also disclosed that there are even more structural faults along the thoroughfare which also leads to the Mackenzie-Wismar Bridge.
“As soon as you come off the bridge, about a hundred yards, the road is collapsing there. When you come to about 250 yards where we’re working right now, that collapsed. When you come at the cinema (former Palm Tree Cinema) there’s a huge hole. There’s an erosion from the river right through…It’s not a case where you have a piecemeal; you have to do a study to know if there will be a disaster. One day the whole road might collapse with people because we don’t know what is happening”, Morian warned.
The Regional Chairman also pointed to a “drop” and an “indentation” to other sections of the Burnham Drive road. According to Morian, five other areas also face the same threat. He has therefore made a call for a hydraulics engineer from the Ministry of Public Infrastructure to visit the location to provide advice on the way forward.
The Ministry, he disclosed, is responsible for servicing the thoroughfare. Morian said while the Burnham Drive road contract is not in his hands, he is certain that assiduous work is being carried out. He assured that he often visits the location but so far the project appears to be on schedule.
As a result of rehabilitation to the main thoroughfare, a bypass was created at McNabb corner, but drivers have complained about the deplorable and uneven state of the bypass. The chairman asserted however that the said contractor recently “levelled” the bypass stretch.
Additionally, Morian said contracts were signed last week for repair works to be carried out on deplorable roads in Linden. This will also include rehabilitation to a huge hole in the vicinity of Pinhead Corner along the One Mile Public Road at Wismar, among others. Those works are expected to commence sometime next week.
Morian continues to make calls for road signage to be erected across Region 10 (Upper Demerara/Berbice).
“We have made repeated requests to the Ministry of Public Infrastructure…except there are signs, it means that we can see an increase in accidents, with the increase of vehicular traffic in Region 10”, Morian said.
