Residents of Glasgow and Edinburgh villages on the East Bank of the Berbice River are calling on the relevant authorities to intervene and execute immediate repair works on the bridges that link the communities to other parts of the East Berbice-Corentyne region.
Joining the call for immediate infrastructural intervention were the taxi drivers and other vehicle operators who provide services to the affected communities.
Over at Glasgow New Housing Scheme, the residents reported that the bridge has not seen any repairs for over a decade despite their repeated complaints to authorities at the New Amsterdam municipality.
The housing settlement has two entrances and both are in a dire state. In fact, some residents are thinking of shutting down the bridge since it is the main reason for thousands of dollars in damages to vehicles traversing it.
Meanwhile, concerns have also been expressed over the state of the roads in the community which is home to more than 5000 residents.
One resident, Bebi Yadram, told this publication that vehicles are refusing to take passengers into the housing scheme because of the condition of the access bridge.
“I am very concerned about this bridge. It is since 1999 this bridge has been fixed or repaired. Immediate work is needed on it,” Yadram said.
Hire car driver and Glasgow Housing Scheme resident, Abdul Khan said that the community is being neglected by both Regional and Central Government. According to him, Social Protection Minister Amna Ally was in New Amsterdam a few years ago and he raised the issue with her. Promises were made but no follow-up was done.
“I told her [Ally] about the bridge, the conditions of the road and also the garbage and she promised that Government will be looking into it. So far, I have not seen anything being done. Every day I traverse this road and only yesterday a driver damage he car right here on the bridge. So, we are asking the Government to look into the matter,” Khan pleaded.
The drivers and residents pooled together their resources and labour to place a temporary fix on a permanent problem. They remain hopeful that the authorities will be a bit considerate and come up with a permanent solution. (Story by Andrew Carmichael)
