NEGRIL, Westmoreland — Following delays, rehabilitation work started last week on West End Road in Negril. The estimated cost is $19 million.

The project is sponsored and designed by the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF) with oversight/project management services provided by the National Works Agency (NWA). The contractor is Bernard’s Construction Services Limited.

Delays in starting the project were brought to the attention of Prime Minister Andrew Holness during a special meeting held at the James Hunter Event Centre in Negril last Friday.

The NWA’s community relations officer, western region, Janel Ricketts, told the Jamaica Observer on Thursday that the project was delayed as a result of works to facilitate the repair of leaky pipes beneath the road surface.

That was completed and the road rehabilitation work should have started during the week that the island was impacted by the passage of Hurricane Beryl.

Now that the storm is out of the way, the rehabilitation work, which is expected to last six weeks, started last Monday.

The scope of work entails drainage improvement — construction of catch basin; installation of culverts, construction of U-drains; construction of concrete V-drain; reshaping and resurfacing of the roadway; and the construction of a retaining wall.

Meanwhile, work is progressing on the $88 million retaining wall and road reconstruction project which was severely damaged by a cold front that impacted the island in February.

The wave action had resulted in a section of the West End corridor — opposite Sunshine Village Plaza — being reduced to single-lane access.

The project, which commenced on May 27, is contracted to J and L Equipment and Construction Services Limited, and is scheduled to be completed on September 27.

Following the cold front, Holness visited the area and promised to have reconstruction work started, utilising the emergency procurement process.

Member of Parliament (MP) for Westmoreland Western Morland Wilson told the Observer that even though the project took three months to get off the ground, this was quick in comparison to past experiences.

“This was not a breakaway that was there and budgeted for over a period of time. The roadway was deteriorating, but it got progressively worse over the past months when we had heavy surges in our coastline,” stated the first-term MP.

Wilson said, initially, his constituents were of the view that nothing would be done to address the issue.

“People were so frustrated, and they were of the belief that it would not be repaired. As fate would have it, everything is good and everyone is now happy and have welcomed the repair works,” Wilson said.