Sir John Golding Road reopened after lengthy rehabilitation

After years of being closed due to a defect, the Sir John Golding Road in St Andrew, which runs parallel to the UWI Mona Campus and links the community of August Town to Papine, was today reopened to vehicular traffic.

The popular thoroughfare became unsafe following extensive flood damage in 2017 and was subsequently closed for repairs.

READ: August Town yearns for reopening of Sir John Golding Road

In this file photo, two curious men take a look at the huge crater formed on Sir John Golding Road in early 2018.

The National Works Agency (NWA) says its initial plan, which was to reinstate the failed section of the roadway as an emergency project, had to be re-scoped to adequately address the full extent of the infrastructural damage.

The NWA further says that additional funding had to be identified to finance the new scope of works and the project had to be subsequently approved by Cabinet and then tendered.

Progress on the project has also been affected by a number of adverse weather events over the period, the agency added.

It says the comprehensive works done to reinstate the roadway include the construction of a gabion retaining wall, the re-engineering and replacement of existing drainage facilities, the installation of safety features such as guardrails and the reinstatement of the road surface.

The project was completed at a cost of $84-million.

During the road closure, motorists had to use alternative routes to access August Town and surrounding communities.

The roadway is however now open and safe to use by all motorists.

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