Minister of Transport and Works, Hon. Lester ‘Mike’ Henry signed a contract this morning at the Ministry of Transport and Works valued at just over $279 million to rehabilitate the Belmont to Scott’s Cove main road in Westmoreland

Speaking at the signing ceremony Minister Henry said that rehabilitation of the roadway is necessary as its present state makes the driving experience between St. Elizabeth and Westmoreland uncomfortable. He said that the condition of the roadway had deteriorated considerably, since the passage of Tropical Storm Nicole in 2010.

Work on the 13.7 kilometres length of roadway is scheduled to begin within two weeks. These works include reconstruction of 4.1 kilometres of the roadway which will be scarified, reshaped and a base course layer of 150 mm thick crushed aggregate placed on it. Another 2.6 kilometres of the roadway will be patched, milled and regulated with Asphaltic Concrete. The entire corridor will be paved with Asphaltic Concrete as the final surface.

This project is being undertaken through the Transportation Infrastructure and Rehabilitation Programme, funded by the Government of Jamaica through a loan from the Inter-American Development Bank.

Minister Henry also indicated that the National Water Commission (NWC) will be undertaking work along the corridor. Among the reasons for the deterioration of the roadway is the presence of an NWC water line for several kilometers, which has been leaking. The pipe laying works are expected to be undertaken simultaneously with the road works through a separate arrangement. while, at the same ceremony a contract was also signed for the const-ruction of a Retaining Wall at Roache Gully, located between White Horses and Morant Bay in St. Thomas.