ST MARY, Jamaica — Mayor Fitzroy Wilson, along with a team of local agencies, on Thursday conducted a walk-through of Port Maria to assess and address several key issues affecting the town, including traffic congestion, illegal vending and public health concerns.

The team comprised representatives from NEPM Waste Management Limited, the police, the Health Department, the fire department, the Municipal Corporation, and the tax office.

“We are basically in the town assessing the issues and the needs of our town. We would have understood and gotten several complaints about the congestion in the town, the illegal vending in the town, other aesthetics of the town to deal with the business trade licence and other health related issues,” Mayor Wilson shared.

One of the matters discussed was the condition of the sanitary facilities at the town’s transportation centre. The mayor assured the public that plans are in place to refurbish the facilities within a month, offering the travelling public a much-needed upgrade.

The team also discussed the state of the town’s drainage system and the pedestrian infrastructure. While recent improvements were made to the sidewalks, the mayor acknowledged that more work is needed to make them safer and more accessible for pedestrians.

“We are going to look at how we can improve the draining system in the town and other aesthetics. The pedestrian and how they traverse the town, we would have done some work in recent times to have the sidewalks more secure. We realised that we need to do a bit more,” he explained.

One bus operator shared his challenges with the team, noting that compliant buses struggled with loading passengers as some bus operators load outside the designated area.

“I’m here from about 9:30 am and all now I can’t get a load. A me next a go load but with that one stay so, mi nuh sure I’ll load,” he said. “On a daily basis we see more cars on the road so we just have to see how we best can go along with the situation because even if we get 15 or 20 minutes work from the police that’s it and we’re right back at square one.”

In the meantime, Superintendent Anthony Wallace, the commanding officer for the St Mary Police Division, promised increased enforcement in the town. He noted that a new sub-officer will take charge of Port Maria, with additional officers joining the team to assist with patrolling and ensuring compliance.

“We’ll be increasing the enforcement and monitoring… working closely with municipal officers, we are confident to ensure that we get full compliance,” Superintendent Wallace said.