By: Spokesman Newsroom
BASSETERRE, St.Kitts (FRIDAY 2ND FEBRUARY 2018)– Minister of Public Infrastructure and Transport Ian ‘Patches’ Liburd has disclosed the reason this time around for further delay in officially commissioning the traffic lights being the availability of Prime Minister Dr. Timothy Harris to do the honour of flipping the ‘on’ switch later this month.
At yesterday’s (Thursday) Prime Minister’s Monthly Press conference held at Government Headquarters during the question and answer segment, Liburd was asked to provide an update since the commissioning of the traffic lights was expected to be done before the end of January this year.
“The traffic lights have already been tested. They are fully operational as we speak. It is anticipated that the energising of these lights will be done…and by God’s willing, the Prime Minister would …flip the switch on Monday the 12th of this month.”
According to him: “We had to postpone the earlier scheduled date due to his pending travel overseas.”
Additionally, Liburd talked about other aspects relating to the commissioning of the traffic lights.
“ The markings would be completed so the lights are ready to go and so of course the regulations that are pertinent to ensuring that the traffic users and pedestrians conform to new safety standards I’m sure would be gazetted I’m sure by the Attorney General’s office sometime during the course of next week.”
Initially, the traffic lights were expected to be commissioned in December 2017.
Members of the public were informed 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.
Another setback has seen the adjustment of the traffic and parking regulations for the legal framework of turning on of the traffic signal system which saw officials pushing back the commissioning date targeting the before the end of January timeline.
An official testing of the traffic light was conducted on Wednesday 17th January.
Work on the traffic lights system began on Saturday 18th November 2017 and the overall project cost for the installment of these street lights is estimated at US$600,000.