LUCEA, Hanover — Though relieved that work has finally begun to replace a problem-plagued culvert on Seaview Drive in this rural seaside town, Member of Parliament for Hanover Western Tamika Davis cannot forget the pain and anger caused by the delay in getting the project off the ground.

“I know that people were clamouring for a short-term fix. I know that people were frustrated at the long-term delays. I can tell you, it was almost near hell,” she told the Jamaica Observer.

“I must apologise to those who suffered during the delays caused by the broken culvert but the good news is that it is not a band-aid fix but a long-term fix that will go a long way,” added Davis who also thanked the police for the role they played in trying to address the chaotic traffic that resulted from the shoddy road.

On Tuesday, the National Works Agency (NWA) began an approximately $5-million repair job which will run for three weeks. It began Tuesday night with the seven-hour closure of the roadway. Work will include construction of catch basins and headwalls and the reinstatement of the road using asphaltic concrete.

The road has been repaired approximately five times since the start of the year, but the asphalt surface disintegrated within days each time. The most recent attempt to provide temporary relief to motorists was done by Councillor Easton Edwards (Jamaica Labour Party, Lucea Division) who used marl to cover the surface.

After a recent NWA assessment identified the compromised culvert as the source of the recurring problem, funding was earmarked almost two weeks ago. MP Davis took issue with the time it took for work to begin.

“In my view, although they [NWA] recognised that it was urgent, applied for and obtained the emergency relief fund, the work was not [started] with the same urgency in which the funds were applied for. So, they got the money and then it was another waiting process,” she argued.

Among the reasons she was given for the delay, she said, was the contractor’s unavailability due to a project outside the parish.

“It was an urgent situation because it is a major thoroughfare connecting two major towns, Negril and Montego Bay. People may say we are talking about tourists — I recognise that they too have difficulty but [so do] locals,” said Davis who noted that the importance of the road cannot be underestimated.