Sinanan: Valencia to Toco Road upgrade completed under budget

Works and Transport Minister Rohan Sinanan said the Valencia to Toco Road Upgrade came in under budget, costing less than the projected $196 million.

Programme for Upgrading Roads Efficiency Unit (PURE) director Hayden Phillip, speaking at the commissioning of the stretch of roadway on Friday, said this is the first segment of what will constitute the Valencia to Toco Highway.

He said a 12.4 km of roadway from the Pillars at Alexander Street to the Junction of the Valencia Main Road and Toco Road was upgraded.

“This highway will comprise a road network providing greater connectivity and increased capacity to regions inclusive if villages in the eastern quadrant, such as Matura, Salybia, and Rampanalgas; the Churchill Roosevelt Highway Extension to Manzanilla via the Ojoe Road connector; and the proposed new port at Toco.”

He said the project maximised the involvement of local contractors and district labour in the implementation of the work, which was split into eight packages.

“Eight local contractors were utilised, using a significant percentage of labour from the surrounding villages, thus adding to the skill banks of the construction industry.”

Phillip said the project involved widening of the existing main road between the pillars and the newly constructed Valencia Junction Roundabout from two lanes to three; the introduction of the roundabout which allows larger vehicles room to navigate and is designed to withstand the weight of heavy trucks; widening and reconstruction of the existing carriageway to meet international standards; repair of previously existing major slope instabilities at the 4.2 km and 6.6 km marks, the installation of a roundabout at the six km mark with four leges, the southernmost of which will facilitate the connection of the ongoing Churchill Roosevelt Highway Extension to Manzanilla; and the installation of gabion baskets and reinforced concrete retaining walls to retain the embankments at the road edge in various places.

Phillip said the project was affected by unpredictable subsurface water, inconsistent rainfall patterns, unusual volumes of rainfall significantly impacting the groundwater table, and the impacts of covid19 and the war in the Ukraine on material costs, shipping delays, and labour availability.

He said in order to overcome these constraints, the unit adopted various technologies such as cement and bitumen stabilisation to minimise the time taken, improve pavement durability, and increase the overall expected lifespan of the roadway. It used mechanically stabilised mechanically stabilised embankments for the repair of slope failures, and designed and constructed a series of drainage networks and associated infrastructure.

Phillip thanked the contractors who worked on each of the packages: Danny Enterprises Company Ltd, Harry Persad and Sons Company Ltd, Lutchmeesingh's Transport Contractors Ltd, Jusamco Pavers Ltd, Kallco Ltd, General Movers Ltd, Asphalt Pavers Ltd, and Seereeram Brothers Ltd, as well as the National Insurance Property Development Company Limited for their assistance in procurement, as well as the PURE team.

Sangre Grande Chamber of Commerce president Wayne Huggins said the new roadway has already begun bringing new business and increased development into the community. He thanked the government for ignoring the criticisms about the highway.

“Sangre Grande is not nowhere. It is where you want to be. If you look at it, the Sangre Grande regional corporation is three times the size of Tobago. It is becoming a resort area with people coming here on weekends. It is also a great area for investment.”

Education Minister Nyan Gadsby-Dolly congratulated Sinanan and the PURE team on the initiative, saying it would increase access for schoolchildren.

Rural Development and Local Government Minister Faris Al-Rawi said building the roadway meant improving the quality of life of residents and giving time back to travellers, workers, and children.

He said residents should consider what more could be done if local government reform took place and taxes, including property taxes, could be rolled back into the communities they were collected in.

Sinanan said since the area had begun to open up, he had seen more development taking place, including malls and housing developments. He appealed to developers to get their statutory approvals before building in the area so as to not contribute to flooding. He noted that the mouth of the Sangre Grande River is a protected area and therefore the ministry could not clear and dredge as it would like to.

Residents said they were appreciative of the new roadway as it would ease their traffic woes.