The Government is to implement a $40-billion road improvement project to modernise 2,000 roads across the island under the so-called ‘Shared Prosperity through Accelerated Improvement to our Road Network (SPARK) programme.

The road repairs will commence during the upcoming financial year and will be phased over three years, under the theme ‘Modernising Our Roads for Our Shared Prosperity’.

The disclosure was made by the Minister of Finance, Dr Nigel Clarke during his recent contribution to the 2023/24 Budget Debate.

“The SPARK Programme is part of the Government’s multipronged strategy to respond to the decades of underinvestment in our nation’s roads,” Clarke said while making the argument that the SPARK initiative will “improve road safety and catalyse economic growth by restoring badly deteriorated public infrastructure”.

Clarke stressed that the road network is the “backbone of our economy” connecting businesses, industries and individuals across the country, and the Government considers the intervention as an emergency within the context of road deaths and the deteriorating state of the public thoroughfare.

He said that with statistics on road deaths at a staggering level, “it is our responsibility as a Government to take action to reduce this burden on our healthcare system”.

The Minister outlined that the project is aligned with the Government’s policy objectives, which contribute directly to several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and will result in the development of quality, reliable, sustainable, and resilient infrastructure, including regional and transborder infrastructure, to support economic development and human well-being.

He informed that the Government has entered into an agreement with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to act as transaction advisors for the North Coast Highway between Mammee Bay and Montego Bay, which will start in the 2023/2024 fiscal year.

According to the Minister, the Government has also committed some $40 million to conduct a feasibility study for the bypassing of Runaway Bay and Discovery Bay, to complement the current North Coast Highway widening project.

Both projects will be implemented at a cost of US$1 billion, on a phased basis over three years.