PORTLAND, Jamaica — A section of the Buff Bay to Balcares main road in West Portland will be closed to vehicular traffic at Charles Town for brief periods on Tuesday, May 14 and Wednesday, May 15, the National Works Agency (NWA) is reporting.

The closure is to facilitate critical preliminary works as part of a rock fall protection project being implemented along a 200-metre stretch of the roadway, the NWA said.

NWA Senior Communications Officer, Ramona Lawson, explained that on both days, the roadway will be closed for one-and-half-hour periods, between the hours of 11:00 am and 12:30 pm.

The closure, she said, is to allow for the removal of loose rocks from the hillside at Charles Town by way of light drilling. 

It is expected that material will be deposited onto the roadway during the activity, making it dangerous for motorists to attempt to traverse the area. 

The NWA said the planned works will commence a $13-million project to prevent future rock fall along the stretch.

“A prefabricated solution inclusive of netting will be installed over a one-month period following the conclusion of these preliminary works. The rocky hillside at Charles Town is typically very unstable and is easily displaced, often imperilling the roadway,” the agency said.