By: Precious Mills

BASSETERRE, St.Kitts (JANUARY 2018) – Before the traffic lights in Basseterre are officially turned on for public use, government has to ensure that the legal framework surrounding such commissioning is in place; a process that is currently being worked on which has attracted public criticism.

The traffic lights were expected to be commissioned in December 2017. However, the public was told that a new time frame was early January due to a delay in the delivery of some of the component parts for the system to the island.

Recently, word surfaced that the turning on of the traffic signal system had no legal backing since the traffic and parking regulations need to be adjusted accordingly.

He made the disclosure while speaking with members of the local media following a traffic lights testing carried out on Wednesday morning this week (17^th January).

Conducting the test exercise were officials from the Public Works Department (PWD), St. Kitts Electricity Company (SKELEC) Ltd. as well as Synergy Engineering Ltd and ADeB Consultants (Jamaican-based companies which handled installation of the traffic lights system) while officials from Traffic Department of the Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force supervised.

Asked by this reporter about the legal frame work process surrounding the commissioning of the traffic lights, Williams responded: “The latest that I have is that the Legal Department is finishing up the amendment to the regulations and I believe that would be published and gazetted in a short time; I l think less than a week. That is my anticipation and then soon thereafter I would expect the commissioning.”

Commenting on what he would say to critics about putting up the lights before the legal go ahead for commissioning, Williams said: “The lights are up. There was some delay with regards to that but it’s not much of a delay as I said; the amendment is something that can be done in a matter of a few days.”

Asked by another reporter if the amendment is the only delay at this point, he replied: “Well, I cannot say exactly what ceremony will be planned for the actual commissioning or turning on. That, I think is still up to the Cabinet to decide exactly when and how they want to do the turning on or commissioning but we have done the testing today and there might be some little markings here and there to finish up but by and large, we are ready to go.”

“As I said the legal part of it, the amendment to the regulations, as I said, I don’t see any reason why that can’t be completed as soon as possible because it doesn’t require going to Parliament or anything like that, it’s just regulations, the Minister signs it, it’s gazetted and put into effect,” he added.

As it relates to the functionality of the traffic signal system, Williams informed that “So far everything seems to be working as expected.”

He went on to say: “As far as I’m aware, no time has been set yet for the commissioning but I’m sure that the information would be put out soon in the public domain from the appropriate ministry. From our testing, everything seem to have gone well and we look forward to the smooth commissioning that the public will be pleased with the traffic lights. I believe that it will improve pedestrian safety as well as vehicular safety and throughput in terms of these intersections.”

Pointing to what is called the control cabinet, the PWD official gave an update that the system parts have been delivered to the island.

“These are brain of the operation. There are of course cabling from these cabinet to the poles carrying the lights; computers that control the lights.”

Rajiv Subaran of ADeB Consultants informed that a full test had not been performed until that day.

”Right now the system has been programmed and we have ran cycles to test the programming… Everything is operational. It wasn’t done with the traffic itself but it’s done to say that the lights are functioning so eventually when the lights are commissioned, they would run with the traffic.”

In an effort to ease traffic congestion in the Basseterre area, the traffic lights have been installed at the intersection of Fort Street, Cayon Street and Victoria Road as well as the bottom of Fort Street which connects the Bay Road and also at the Queen Victoria roundabout which joins Wellington Road, Pond Road and Cayon Street.