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A Bridge in time
The feasibility study for the proposed new bridge across the Demerara River has been completed. Slowly we are inching towards defusing a ticking time bomb that is the present “floating bridge” that has long passed its “use-by” date. What had been a novelty back in 1978 when it was put together like the Lego set it resembles more than anything, has now become a creaking, swaying, rusting relic that deserves to be retired with a medal for “service above and beyond”.
The new permanent structure will be made of reinforced concrete and rise to a height of 50 metres (air draft) at its highest point over the river channel for boats and ships plying the Demerara River. The navigational clearance at that point will be 100 metres wide, which should offer enough space for the widest vessels to traverse comfortably. In addition, there will be modern ancillary marine collision protection to prevent the episodic accidents with the present floating structure.
While there has been some discussion in the press about the feasibility of using reinforced concrete, we should note that the Jules Wijdenbosch Bridge across the Suriname River, between Paramaribo and Meerzorg ,is 52 metres high and has been operating for over 13 years to date (opened May 20, 2000), without any problems. It had been built by Ballast Needam, a Dutch firm with a wealth of experience in building bridges – including some in Guyana.
Unlike the present two lanes, the proposed four lanes for vehicular traffic (20 metres wide), should obviate the need for closure of traffic in one direction during the morning and afternoon rush hours. On the other hand, the increased disgorgement of traffic into the road system at those times will have to be taken into consideration so that new bottlenecks are not created. The walkway for pedestrians, inclusive of a cycle lane that has proven to be an attractive feature in the old bridge, will be maintained over the entire estimated span of 2250 metres for the new bridge.
There are two locations being considered, the first being from Versailles on the West Bank to Houston on the East Bank and the second further upstream from Patentia on the West Bank to Good Hope on the East Bank. While the first option is more feasible from the standpoint of disgorging and accepting traffic closer to Georgetown so that the present traffic jam is not perpetuated, the need for 2km of overhead ramps at Houston would add a cost of US$100 million onto the base price of US$231 million, which would include access roads. This is a huge variance, and the pros and cons must be weighed carefully.
The greatest consideration would be the tolls to cover the financing costs. Presently, approximately 9000 vehicles on the average cross the river daily, but we can expect this to grow substantially by the time the Bridge is constructed, which is at least six years away. The largest percentage of this traffic is cars and even those owners would concede that the present toll of $100 (US$.50) is just a nominal charge. While one would not want to replicate the toll rate of the Berbice Bridge, it is our considered judgement that an increase to $500 per crossing might not prove too onerous a burden for car-commuters. This might encourage car-pooling, which would reduce the traffic pouring into Georgetown.
The financing for such a project would be the major hurdle. The Private-Public partnership BOOT (Build, Own, Operate and Transfer) model used on the Berbice Bridge is one proposed option. However, based on our experience with that Bridge, the need to generate such huge guaranteed rates of return in the first twenty years would demand much too burdensome toll rates.
During the visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping last month in Trinidad, he announced a loan/grant facility of US$3billion dollars that can be accessed for infrastructural projects in the region. We suggest the government makes this their proposal for funding of the new Demerara Harbour Bridge immediately.
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