Broken bridge hampers farm production
Published:Saturday | May 14, 2011 | 12:00 AM
Christopher Serju, Gleaner Writer
ANNOTTO BAY, St Mary:
VIJAY SMITH'S employees know the drill by heart, having worked the routine for the last five years. Whenever there is a threat of rain in the St Andrew hills, those who live in Annotto Bay stop working immediately and head home.
"You have to stop and make them go home because if the river come down, you have to carry them all the way round" he explains in a matter-of-fact tone.
Giving the workers most of the day very often means compromising the farm's ability to meet the delivery deadline for papaya or peppers but it's the lesser of two evils for proprietor of the farm located in Georgia, St Mary.
When he took up farming at the location some six years ago, it was considered a prime location being in walking distance from the Westmoreland Bridge, the main gateway to Kingston or Annotto Bay for residents of Highgate, Cromwell Land, Coffee Piece, Bromley and other adjoining communities. However, the closure of the bridge for repairs since about 2006 has created a nightmare for those who once enjoyed its benefits.
The bed of Wag Water River the bridge spans is now the main roadway for Smith's employees who cross it to get to work, saving the cost of travelling all the way around through Belfield, a long and tedious journey. With everyday pass-through traffic a thing of the past, chances of hitching a ride are zero and the extra money it would cost to travel the route every day cuts into the earnings. They, however, are not the only ones hurting as with no public transportation passing the factory, which sits along the main road, Smith must provide transportation to and from work for workers coming from the direction of Highgate.
Charter taxi
"Because of where the farm is and there is no reason for vehicles to be going back and forth, I have to make sure I get the vehicle to carry the man them and carry them back," relates Smith.
"So if my vehicle breaks down, I have to charter somebody's taxi to transport all the workers. Luckily, most of them come from Highgate area and there are two from Annotto Bay and when the river come down, them can't come work.
"When we do peppers, we use about 15 women from Annotto Bay and anytime it rain is a dead day, can't do anything because they can't do anything. If they are there working and rain start fall, them haffi quick leave whatever them doing and go home," Smith recounts.
For Smith, making deliveries or going to buy inputs is now also a much more costly venture, as a result of the road constraint.
"If you are down there and want to go into Kingston with papaya or buy fertiliser, you have to go all the way into Highgate and go back down and the roads are so bad it takes up about at last one hour extra to go around. Even if you going to Ocho Rios, you could just go on the flat and go round," he says with a sigh.
In addition to being longer, the Belfield route is in a very deplorable condition but the Esher alternative or going all the way to Whitehall also adds a lot to the fuel bill. Either way, between the cost of replacing front-end parts and the extra mileage involved, taxi operators have no choice but to charge more. Paying extra for a more uncomfortable ride, usually in a cramped sitting position as drivers strive to maximise their returns, only adds insult to a bad situation for the commuting public.
The question on everyone's mind: When will they fix the bridge?