OCHO RIOS, St Ann – Repair work on breakaways along the Lime Hall and the Parry Town main roads is expected to cost the government more than $60 million, according to Richard Azan, the junior minister for housing, transportation and works.

Azan spoke with reporters following a tour of sections of St Ann on Wednesday, during which he looked at the breakaways along the Lime Hall and the Parry Town roads.

The junior minister, who was accompanied by NWA’s communications manager Stephen Shaw, parish manager Vincent Small and MP Shahine Robinson, told reporters that the breakaway along the main road leading from Ocho Rios to Parry Town would be addressed at a cost of $30 million, with work scheduled to start early October.

At the same time, he said work now being done on the breakaway along the St Ann’s Bay to Lime Hall main road, at the top of Gully Road, will cost just over

$30 million

Azan said protective work on a culvert at Mammee Bay and repairs to Top Road in St Ann’s Bay, which is being used as the alternative route to Lime Hall, should also begin in October.

Meanwhile, he said the dust nuisance affecting residents on sections of that road would be addressed as a matter of priority, as he apologised to the residents for the inconvenience.

“I apologise to residents who use that road for the dust that is there and to say that we are going to give instructions to the parish manager to immediately start the oiling of that road to ease some of the dust problem there,” Azan said.

Residents of Lime Hall have protested on several occasions over the problem caused by the dust and the slow pace at which work was being done on the main road.

But Azan appealed to users of the road to be patient as the ministry will not be able to adequately repair the road until the work on the breakaway is complete.

Azan admitted that the delay in repairing the road was due to a lack of funding, which he said held up the design, but he said with the money now in place, once the work starts it will continue to completion.

“By early October, work will start here and we are going to stick by our word that next month is the time that we will start,” Azan said.

He added: “Mammee Bay, where we need to do some protective work. some work will start there very shortly. Top Road, again, is another area we hope to be starting by next week”.

Azan said a lot of money was being spent in the constituency of North East St Ann, which he said was getting the “lion’s share”, but admitted it was not enough. He said, however, that all the work could not be done at once.

Meanwhile, Azan said he was pleased with the work being done to repair the Lime Hall main road breakaway.

“It’s a technical work and therefore I think the contractors and the workers are trying their best,” he said in response to questions from reporters.

Member of Parliament for North East St Ann Shahine Robinson said she sympathised with residents who were being affected by the dust, who again demonstrated earlier in the day Wednesday over the conditions.

“I have to stand on the side of the law, but I also sympathise with those persons who have to live in that virtual dust bowl,” Robinson said. She thanked the minister for the effort being made to address the various problems in the constituency.