No decision made to hike Demerara Harbour Bridge tolls – ministry

The increase in select tolls for the Demerara Harbour Bridge is necessary to cushion the close to $400M a year government subsidy and to prepare commuters for a more modern facility, Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo said yesterday even as the Public Infrastructure Ministry and bridge company denied that a final decision had been made.

The state-owned Guyana Chronicle reported in its edition yesterday that cabinet had approved “slight” increases in tolls for motor cycles and cars. According to the article the agreed fee is now $40 and $200 respectively; they both represent a 100% increase.

Stabroek News was provided with video footage by the Office of the Prime Minister of Nagamootoo addressing the issue at his home after hosting a team of international experts on heritage sites and buildings.

He noted that there has been information in the public domain regarding an increase in tolls for the Demerara Habour Bridge. “I believe that you have to situate any adjustment in the existing toll within the context of a question; Do we need or do we want a new, modern habour bridge across the Demerara River?…The answer is yes”.

According to Nagamootoo, everyone feels there is need for a better bridge which would take them across the river faster. He said that one could utilise the idea of a “fly pass”, explaining that after leaving the bridge this might be needed so that motorists do not go head-on into the traffic coming from the East Bank.

“These would be at a cost and if you want to enjoy a better facility then initially the commuters must be able to make a deposit on the intention of the government to have a new bridge”, he posited.

He said that the second issue is that the bridge has been heavily subsidised. “If you look at the figures, you have close to $400M a year coming out of tax payers’ money to subsidise the operation of the bridge, the repairs that have to be done on the bridge and then periodically if you have a bridge that is linked to pontoons you would have the stray trawler or vessels bumping into it occasionally and so you will always have structural damage”, the prime minister said.

According to Nagamootoo, a modern bridge should be one which should be rooted on a sound foundation “so that you can have constantly, vessels passing under the bridge rather than to open the bridge which causes delays”.

Nagamootoo said that with the doubling of the toll price for a motor car, “you would hear the shout that bridge increase by 100%. Now it’s not the percent. The question that you need to place on the table is that unless you have a cost recovery you will not be able to maintain this bridge or any other bridge and you might as well start doing it now, be frank and upright with the Guyanese people to let them know that if we want the better life and the better convenience then we are gonna have to pay a little more for that”.

He then made mention of the comparison between the prices paid by the users of the Berbice Bridge and the Demerara  Habour Bridge, calling the difference in fees to use the two  unfair.

“If you are dealing with two bridges…the Berbice people were paying ten times more, twenty times more than the commuters of the Demerara Bridge. So you are gonna have to find some balance”, he said.

According to Nagamootoo the two are the same type of facility.

“In this case the toll is not equitable and therefore you have to share the responsibility to all commuters that if they want to have these better, modern facilities we have to start taking on some of the responsibility to pay a little more, because a little more will take us further”, he said.

Meanwhile, Minister within the Ministry of Public Infrastructure, Annette Ferguson told Stabroek News yesterday that a decision had not yet been made to increase the tolls. She said that the issue is still up for discussion and is being ironed out. According to the Minister she had attended the Cabinet meetings held last week and this week and no such decision was made.

Stabroek News was unable to make contact with General Manager of the Demerara Habour Bridge Corporation, Rawlston Adams. A staff member stated that he was out of office and would not be returning. The staffer said that Adams was the only person who could provide answers to the questions this newspaper had on the increase in toll prices.

The Ministry of Public Infrastructure’s Public Relations Officer, Desilon Daniels said that the ministry is not sure what the article in the Chronicle was based upon. Daniels told Stabroek News that as far as the management of the bridge is aware “no decision was made as no such news has been transmitted to them”.

A government official told Stabroek News yesterday that a date has not been identified for toll adjustments to be implemented but it is “expected that this will be done in the second half of the year”.

No consultation

Responding on the Chronicle article, Region Three Chairman Julius Faerber told Stabroek News that the region was not consulted on the issue and said that if there is a doubling of prices the travelling public will be impacted.

According to the Regional Chairman every cent for an ordinary person counts. “There are people who work for less than $10, 000 per week like the sales person. For them to pay increases it would be difficult especially if they have large families or are single parents.”

He said that the Region is a “main player in the use of the bridge” and as such should have been consulted. Persons travelling to Regions 2, 3 and 7 use it.