Meeting to be called with Link 6 Stakeholders
The Minister of Public Housing, Environment, Spatial Planning and Infrastructure (Ministry VROMI) Hon. Maurice Lake is prioritizing the solutions of important issues that are affecting the quality of life and safety of the citizens of St. Maarten which also includes road links.
In order to alleviate the traffic on Sint Maarten, besides Minister Lake’s diligent efforts on road repair, Lake is also paying attention to get the much needed road links executed. These links such as the, Ring Road, the so-called "Cake House" road and the much-needed Link 6 that will connect Union road to Belvedere, with a feeder road from South Reward, is high on his priority list.
"The Link 6 connection will not only ease the very hectic morning traffic in the South Reward, Ebenezer, L.B. Scott Road areas due to not having other access roads in that area, but will also enhance safety in case of life threatening situations.
"The time that is lost being stuck in traffic in the aforementioned area, especially in the morning, and the valuable resources that is used in the form of Control Officers, can be minimized just by improving accessibility through an East-West connection," Minister Hon. Maurice Lake pointed out on Monday.
A UNESCO report that was made after the excessive flooding in the aforementioned areas in 2005 that cost the lives of two persons, highly advised the Government to work on an alternative road infrastructure network to that area that could be used as an escape route, and for emergency vehicles to be able to reach the various district neighborhoods in case of calamity and or accidents.
A lot of preliminary preparation and planning has gone into the different options for Link 6. Minister Lake has decided to take a more hands on approach in the realization of Link 6. The Minister will call a meeting as soon as possible with the owners and representatives of all the landowners connected to the proposed Link 6 route.
"Everybody should be involved to give speed and coherence in the execution of this project," Minister Lake pointed out.
A presentation will be given at Ministry of VROMI in presence of the Minister to all stakeholders to align all interest and seek input of all the stakeholders in order to come up with a comprehensive plan of approach and execution timetable for Link 6.
"The time has come to act now. The construction of Link 6 has to start as soon as possible in the interest and safety of the citizens of Sint Maarten and in particular the residents of St. Peters, Saunders, South Reward, Ebenezer, St. John’s Estate, Mary’s Fancy and Cul de Sac.
"When things drag on for too long, people lose faith. I will make sure during my one-year tenure in serving the people of this great country, that important projects such as those mentioned are executed and realized instead of just laying around in some bookcase. Projects like these also create jobs, and our people and construction sector need work in order to revitalize our economy," Minster Hon. Maurice Lake said on Monday.