MONTEGO BAY, St James — Jamaica Public Service Company Ltd (JPS) is in the final stages of once again illuminating sections of Montego Bay’s elegant corridor and Bogue main road.

Work on the corridor included the rebuilding of 60 pole bases, installation of 85 poles, replacement of more than 145 lamps and rehabilitation of sections of the underground circuit. For the Bogue end of the project, three pole bases were rebuilt, three poles installed and 216 lamps replaced.

“I’m happy now that we have restored light to the space,” Mayor of Montego Bay Richard Vernon said after a recent tour of the two stretches of road to view the repaired infrastructure.

“For some time the darkness took away the elegance from this corridor and I’m happy that today we are able to stand here and witness the restoration of the lights,” he added.

The St James Municipal Corporation pays about $26 million each year for street lights. That bill is expected to increase when all the damaged lights on the elegant corridor have been repaired. Once the purview of the National Works Agency, oversight of street lights was transferred to JPS last year.

“We played a key role in ensuring that the transition was a smooth process and now we have a proper set up for the payment of bills and the maintenance of the infrastructure,” Vernon pointed out.

The elegant corridor has 748 lamps on 420 poles. This stretches from the airport to Iberostar Hotel. From the airport to the Barrett Town intersection there are double lights but from Barrett Town to Iberostar, single lights.

A few lamps are yet to be replaced but that will be done under phase two of the project that will see adjustments done to the lighting infrastructure at intersections along the elegant corridor.

“We are not going to install them just yet because they are at the intersection which we have redesigned and put the lights at the side. That will be a part of the second phase that will start shortly,” explained JPS Manager, Transmission & Distribution Grid Services Edwin Levermore.

He said this will reduce the long-running negative impact of motor vehicle crashes on the infrastructure.

Levermore explained that by moving the infrastructure from the middle of the road to the side, there is a greater chance of reduce of these incidents.

His comment about the proposed change was welcomed by Vernon who explained that while he is pleased that two important corridors in St James are no longer shrouded in darkness, he has concerns about road safety.

“I am appealing to [motorists] to use the road safely and to be more responsible and I am anticipating that there will be a reduction [in crashes] based on the fact that the illumination is now enhanced,” he said.

“Persons now can see better and should be able to navigate the space better,” the mayor remarked.

Operations commander for the St James police, Deputy Superintendent Lynroy Edwards was also delighted with the improved lighting.

“We are happy for this rehabilitation because from a law enforcement perspective, the lack of lights on a major thoroughfare poses a challenge for motorists, police and the citizens. The fact that this corridor is well lit is a welcomed move. Thanks to all the stakeholders, particularly the JPS, that played their part in ensuring that the area is lit,” he said.

Edwards believes the lights, along with the presence of the police, will play a crucial role in reducing crashes and damage to the infrastructure.

“You would have seen in recent times, the movement along the corridor of both the Public Safety and Traffic Enforcement Branch (PSTEB) and Area One highway patrol, so the presence is visible. And of course, we believe that these new lights will reduce the number of accidents that we have been experiencing over some time along this corridor,” he said.

Chair for the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association Montego Bay chapter Kerry Ann Qualo-Casserly also expressed pleasure that the lights were once again functional.

“I’m ecstatic because for sure street lighting is a very important infrastructure component for tourism to thrive in the western region. Not only for hotel workers, but for our visitors,” she said.

“Safety is of paramount importance for us; again let there be light. It’s progress, we are moving forward and we thank all the authorities, we thank the JPS, NWA for making this a possibility,” she said.

JPS has stressed the need for care in preventing damage as when one post is removed, it affects a number of others in the circuit and leaves large sections without illumination.

Levermore said motor vehicle crashes continue to hamper on-going repairs.

“We conducted a rehabilitation assessment in January of this year which revealed damage to 110 poles and 60 pole bases, as a result of motor vehicle accidents,” he noted.

“Since that assessment and the commencement of repairs, more than 19 additional motor vehicle accidents have been recorded along the corridor, resulting in damage to an additional 27 poles and 22 pole bases,” added Levermore.

He said they are looking at strategies to see how they can assist in minimising damage to the lighting infrastructure.

“With lights restored to the thoroughfare, JPS is going a step further to assist motorists to exercise caution. We will also put reflectors on the poles so that drivers travelling along the corridor have extra illumination to reduce the likelihood of accidents,” Levermore said.

“We are currently exploring ways to reduce the impact of motor vehicle accidents on lighting along the stretch. This entails splitting the circuit to reduce the number of lights that go out when contact is made with a single pole,” he added.

Project preparation work started in November 2023 and practical rehabilitation started a month later. According to Levermore, there have been recent weather-related delays.