Business owner concerned about Clansman Gang traffic changes

Businessman Michael Ammar Jr says he's concerned that the closure of some streets to facilitate the trial of alleged members of the Clansman Gang in the Home Circuit Court in downtown Kingston will negatively affect businesses along the corridors.

The trial of the 33 alleged gangsters by a judge alone under the Criminal Justice (Suppression of Criminal Organizations) Act, 2014, better known as the anti-gang legislation, started this morning.

The police closed intersections in the vicinity of the court building for security reasons.

The businessman, who operates Ammar's department store, said that while he believes that the heightened security will not affect shoppers, the closure of the important roads will affect operations at some businesses.

He noted that this was the case whenever traffic restrictions are put in place for high-profile court matters.

"The biggest problems are going to be congestion, traffic pileup and the inability of delivery vehicles to get in and out of the commercial area," said Ammar Jr.

"This will push all the traffic up Orange Street basically shutting it down, and with Beckford Street impassable because of street vending, there will definitely be concerns," he added.

Ammar Jr says the police should ensure that proper traffic management is maintained in the commercial district.

Meanwhile, Gassan Azan, another prominent business owner who operates in the downtown Kingston commercial district, told The Gleaner that he does not believe he will be affected.

"We have had high-profile trials before where these streets were closed and we were able to deal with it. I really don't think this will affect us, no more than the no-movements days affected us," Azan stated.

- Ruddy Mathison

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