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Toll keeps Harbour Bridge afloat

Mar 31, 2009 News

The Demerara Harbour Bridge (DHB), despite Government subsidies on all of the maintenance works (repairs, deck plate replacement) and the approximate $23 million raked in every month from toll payments; is barely breaking even. The DHB collects some $700,000 daily, by way of toll.
According to a source within the DHB, the lion’s share of the money generated by the DHB is spent in paying staff and to provide electricity to the floating bridge. There is sometimes a minimal amount of money turned over by the DHB that is spent on smaller maintenance projects.
These include the procurement of fuel for and the maintenance of the boats, the dredge and vehicles at the disposal of the DHB.
All of the maintenance works being done on the DHB, including the replacement of deck plates and repairs periodically being done to pontoons, are fully subsidized by the government through the Ministry of Public Works.
According to the ‘Estimates of the Public Sector,’ released by the Ministry of Finance and presented to the National Assembly, in the budget this year, the rehabilitation exercise of the DHB has attracted $749 million.
This is an increase from the some $682 million budgeted in 2008 and the estimated $645 million in the 2007 budget.
An intensive project, to replace almost a quarter of the deck plates on the DHB began after President Bharrat Jagdeo, in an exclusive interview with the National Communications Network (NCN), November, last year, said that he was “very concerned about the management of the Harbour Bridge, because to allow things to get to that state it’s unbelievable, almost criminal!”
The President had, at the same time, noted that the bridge has other structural issues, including some of the anchor chains rotting.
Since the project began in November 2008, approximately 33 percent of the damaged deck plates have been replaced. Sources at the DHB have said that they are confident that they will make their deadline of May 2008, for completing the replacement of the 2000 deck plates.

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