Utility cables hobble SPARK project

GREENWOOD, St James — Utility cables have emerged as the latest obstacle delaying the completion of a Shared Prosperity through Accelerated Improvement to Our Road Network (SPARK) project in Greenwood, St James. Contractors have been unable to complete the rehabilitation of just under one-mile of road leading into the community as they await relocation of the underground wires. “The reason why the Greenwood project has not been completed is that there are some telecommunications cables that are there. We have made requests to the telecommunications company that is responsible for those cables to move them,” minister without portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation Robert Morgan, told the Jamaica Observer Tuesday. He has responsibility for works. “We can’t move them because if we move them, then they might get damaged and a large portion of the area would be without telecommunications services,” the minister added. The Greenwood road is among several in St James earmarked for rehabilitation under the government’s $45-billion SPARK programme. However while other roads — including some on which work began later — have seen varying levels of completion, the Greenwood project remains unfinished. The incomplete section stretches approximately half-a-kilometre from the community’s entrance off the highway to a section of Greenwood Avenue. “We are really trying to work with the telecommunications company to remove those cables — I think some of them are fibre-optic cables — so we can finish the road,” Morgan continued. Work began on the road late last year but the project has been plagued by delays, which the minister acknowledged. While most of the repairs have been done and drainage installed, the last portion has lagged for about six months. China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC), the contractor undertaking the project, has completed approximately 90 per cent of the work. “I know the residents have been challenged. Because initially we had a water line issue where we had to instal new pipes and now that the road is pretty much paved that little section there is a challenge to the residents; so we are working on it,” Morgan assured. For now, sections of the unfinished road remain open for drainage works, with caution signs placed in the area to alert motorists and pedestrians to potential hazards. President of the Greenwood Citizens’ Association Trevor Burnett, Jr said he had been given a similar explanation for the delay. “CHEC came out, I think August 1st, and said they were going to put in a new drain so that we don’t have any more flooding and as they started to dig, Flow cables and fibres underground started to be impacted,” he shared. “We got Flow involved and so we are waiting on Flow now to complete their leg. They are supposed to move the fibre from underground, temporarily, and put it on poles so that CHEC can get to install the drain,” Burnett, Jr added. Already concerned about the delay, the association president said he is also worried that there may be additional challenges ahead if the relevant parties fail to properly coordinate their work. “After they remove the underground cables and put them on the post and CHEC completes their road paving, will Flow have to dig up the road again in order to bury back their fibre?” he asked. “We need to know if they can work in conjunction with each other. My thought process is that Flow or CHEC would have put in some pipes alongside the drain so that Flow can just insert their fibres inside of it and we have a smooth sailing going forward,” Burnett, Jr explained. He said he has been seeking answers but had yet to receive any substantial response. Meanwhile, residents continue to contend with the inconvenience caused by the unfinished project. “When it rains, it’s horrible, it’s flooded and you can’t get in and out most of the time. Pedestrians have to be using alternative routes, we have to be creating detour roads for pedestrians to go in and out of the community,” Burnett, Jr said. He said CHEC had placed marl on the road as a temporary measure. However, the recent dry spell has turned the area into a dust bowl for those travelling through the community. Residents said the situation continued to disrupt their daily lives and urgently needs to be addressed. “When it rains it’s a problem and when it’s dry, it’s a dust nuisance; every day I have a cold,” complained Madge-Neil Burnett, who owns Greenwood Plaza. She said the conditions have also affected her business. “My thing them spoil up. Some of them we clean and sell [but] a lot of it we have to throw them away,” she lamented.