Effective tomorrow, Saturday, April 22, the National Works Agency (NWA) will begin implementing major traffic and lane changes along a section of the Mandela Highway.
This in order to facilitate road work associated with the expansion and upgrading project underway.
Manager for Communication and Customer Services at NWA, Stephen Shaw says the agency will be closing down a section of the eastbound carriageway between the highway 2000 off-ramp and the ferry police station.
This is to facilitate work on the new drainage features as well as to lift that section, which is actually lower than the westbound carriage way.
He explained that an additional two lanes have been created on the westbound side and come tomorrow, two of the lanes will be converted to eastbound carriage ways and the other two to take westbound traffic.
Mr. Shaw says the two new lanes will be used to facilitate traffic heading towards Spanish Town while the older lanes will be used to take traffic into the corporate area.
This change will remain in effect until the NWA has completed the work on the Fresh River bridge.
Mr. Shaw added that the work on the new drainage features and the lifting of that section of the roadway is expected to be completed by the end of august.
He explains that lifting is being done as high as three feet above where the level is now, and at the end of the construction work along Mandela, the east and westbound carriageway will be on the same level.
Following this work the NWA will be in a position to put traffic on the Fresh River bridge.
Meantime, in giving an update on the overall Mandela Highway project, manager for communication at the NWA, Stephen Shaw says a few weeks ago, a detour was implemented in the vicinity of the overpass being constructed, that is used to access businesses and the community of ferry.
He says significant work has been done on the overpass, while the cement mixing pile is underway in addition to drainage works.
Mr. Shaw says the NWA has completed the two newer lanes to facilitate westbound traffic, when the detour is implemented, and that some more filling was also done.
Additionally, another detour will be implemented subsequent to works hat start tomorrow and this will be between the Ferry community and John Pringle.
In terms of traffic management, Mr. Shaw says special arrangements have been made for persons heading to the Hydel group of schools, Tile city, IGL, the Ferry police station and the general community.
The NWA will facilitating motorists wishing to make a turn to access these areas, and that turn will be in the vicinity of the ferry police station.
For persons coming from the direction of Spanish Town, wishing to make a u-turn, that will be accommodated by the junction at John Pringle.
As it relates to pedestrians, Mr. Shaw says for persons coming from the direction of Kingston, the area just outside of the police station is wide enough and will be so demarcated for the buses to stop.
Mr. Shaw is appealing to the administration of the Hydel group of schools to work with the NWA and the contractors to ensure the safety of students.
The current upgrading work on the Mandela Highway focuses on 3.6 km of roadway from the six miles overpass to the off/on ramps to the Highway 2000 east/ west corridor.
Construction is being carried out by China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC), under a US $64 m contract.
It is part of the Major Infrastructure Development Programme (MDIP), being financed through a concessionary loan from the government of China.
Upgrading of the roadway will increase the number of lanes from four to six.