GOVERNMENT yesterday failed to announce the long overdue toll charge to use the Portmore/Kingston leg of Highway 2000, even after meeting with representatives of the St Catherine community for almost three hours.

The government had promised last week to have the toll announced on Monday, but delayed the announcement for Wednesday, when the Transport Minister Robert Pickersgill was expected to return to the island. But residents of Portmore were later advised that the announcement would be made yesterday, which the administration again failed to do.

It was not clear yesterday when the toll charge would be announced as the minister would not say, while representatives of Portmore were tight-lipped on the discussions they had with Pickersgill.

“They were given strict instructions to regard this meeting and the discussions as confidential,” Pickersgill told reporters immediately after the meeting at his ministry in Kingston.

The press was barred from entering the ministry’s offices, and was only allowed to enter the building and later the conference room at the end of a near three-hour meeting, as government ensured it kept a firm grip of the proposed toll, despite the contractor advising that plans were on schedule for a July 13 opening.

Yvonne McCormack, president of the Portmore Citizens’ Advisory Committee, told the Observer that the minister made the statement of keeping the discussions confidential at the beginning of the meeting before the discussions started.

She, however, dismissed suggestions from reporters that the minister was trying to keep her and the representatives of Portmore quiet. “I cannot be muzzled,” said McCormack.

However, when further pressed she said there are things that came out of the meeting that they were prepared to take to the toll regulators before they are released to the public.

“.The minister does not want us to come out in the public and suggest a toll rate because whatever rate we suggest today could be a different rate after the toll regulators meet,” McCormack said.

Meanwhile, the minister when questioned about a $60 figure scribbled on a sheet of paper he used at the meeting, said it had to do with the Old Harbour leg of the highway.

However, when a similar question was posed to Fitz Jackson, state minister in the Ministry of Finance, he said that it must have come out of different figures which were floating about in the meeting.

Jackson is the MP for St Catherine South, which takes in a huge chunk of Greater Portmore.

Meanwhile, a source told the Observer that a figure was suggested at the meeting but government did not wish to have it released just now since it was not final.

“What if you heard it was $55,” the source hinted.

McCormack said, however, that the government had not agreed on the proposed $30 toll which the residents said they were willing to pay.

“We took a toll rate of $30 to the minister but he said at $30 the government of Jamaica would have to subsidise $600 million so that toll rate would not be accepted.”

She said this would be taken back to the residents for further discussions.

Asked if they were not given a counter figure, she said no, adding that the minister has not exposed his hand.

She said all they received from the minister was added information, on the reason why the toll would be where it is going to be and information on the feeder roads to be repaired.

“I don’t feel good about it but that is what the minister gave us and we have to work with that,” she said.

Meanwhile, Trevor Jackson of TransJamaican, developers of the highway said he, too, was not satisfied with the delay in the announcement of the toll.

“I am concerned about the time as there is a process that needs to be gone through. and my experience is that the process takes a long time, longer than three weeks,” he said.

“The reason it is taking so long is that it is a politised and emotional issue, so I think it is a balance act that they are trying to work through,” Jackson said.

Jackson said their proposal was to open at $70 with a frequent user discount which would be quite significant so that people doing many trips would get up to 60 per cent discount.

Although he joked about what would happen if a decision is not reached by the time they are finished, his statement that “we may just open and charge people without the minister’s authority” may very well become reality.

Pickersgill was, however, adamant that the government would be ready in time for the opening on July 13.

“Come the 13th if we are not ready, charges start to accumulate and the government would have certain obligation,” he said.

“If they say they are ready and because of our fault the toll booth cannot be open to facilitate business then there are implications.”

Almost two years ago, in August 2004, when Portmore residents raised concerns about a possible $65 toll, Pickersgill assured the residents that there was adequate time to deal with all issues.

“We’re talking about 12-18 months. Time as of now is not the essence,” he said then.

browni@jamaicaobserver.com