The existing bridge located across River Rempart at the outskirt of the Holyrood Village in Vacoas which connects the West to Plaines Wilhems regions is being replaced by a new one to improve traffic flow. In this context, a ground-breaking ceremony was performed, Wednesday afternoon, by the Minister of National Infrastructure and Community Development, Mr Mahendranuth Sharma Hurreeram.
The Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS), Mr Serge Gilbert Bablee; the Member of Parliament, Mr Ashley Ittoo; the Mayor of the Municipal Council of Vacoas-Phoenix, Mr Praveen Kumar Ramburn, and other personalities were present on the occasion.
In a statement, Minister Hurreeram highlighted that the project, funded to the tune of some Rs 50 million, is expected to bring major improvement to the region’s road network and its connectivity with other regions and aims to alleviate traffic jam during peak hours.
Mr Hurreeram recalled that the existing Holyrood bridge is a very narrow one of 2.9 metres wide and allows traffic only along one way at a time resulting in major traffic jam during peak hours. Furthermore, the bridge is on a sag curve with sharp bends with limiting sight distance, which is a safety hazard, he added, and, to amend to these, the Road Development Authority is working to re-align the road and make a wider and deeper bridge with a higher hydraulic capacity.
Since the bridge was made of metal structure and had started to collapse, representing a safety hazard, it became important to reconstruct the bridge, stated Mr Hurreeram. This road, he said, greatly eases the travelling experience of people going towards the West and those journeying from the West to other regions, he pointed out.
Mr Ittoo joined the Minister to point out that along with works undergoing on the bridge, road conditions will also be improved so that commuters enjoy a safer and faster journey. They appealed to the inhabitants as well the commuters of the region to collaborate with the Government and the contractors as projects of this magnitude take time to be completed.
For his part, Mr Bablee said that with regard to the reconstruction of this bridge which exists since 1876, Minister Hurreeram, concerned stakeholders and himself have worked together in order to tackle the challenges that were encountered in the reconstruction of this bridge.
The Holyrood Bridge
The contract for the bridge, expected to be completed in Mid-November 2022, has been awarded to Gamma Construction Co. Ltd under the Framework Agreement for Maintenance and Minor works (2020-2023). The new bridge will be on a total span of 39 metres and includes, among others, the relocation of staircase and prayer area on the riverbed; construction of footpath and drains; street lightings; and refurbishment of the existing bridge.
