'Sigh of relief!'- Motorists, businesses welcome reopening of Bog Walk gorge
Published:Friday | August 12, 2011 | 12:00 AM
Karen Sudu, Gleaner Writer
BOG WALK, St Catherine:
DESPITE HER anxiety, 71 year-old Alice Mendez of West Prospect, St Catherine, expressed delight about the re-opening of the Bog Walk gorge. She was a picture of joy, as she boarded a minibus in Bog Walk on Thursday, on her way to visit her daughter, a patient at the Kingston Public Hospital (KPH).
"Oh, I feel great because it's really hard to find the money to travel the long route every day, so I really feel good that it is open. My daughter is in KPH since Monday awaiting a brain surgery and to travel the other routes daily is really a burden," Mendez told The Gleaner.
The minibus driver, George, who has been plying the Linstead to Spanish Town route for more than 10 years, was also happy that he no longer had to travel the alternative routes.
"Me glad fe the opening of the road because every minute Barry (alternative route) block up and too much pothole up Sligoville and every minute me front end mash up," stresses George.
Business operators in Kent Village have also welcomed the reopening of the gorge which was closed on July 4 to facilitate the completion of pipe-laying work by the National Water Commission.
Robert Larmond, an upholsterer for 18 years, could hardly contain the joy of seeing the vehicles rushing by his business place.
"It's a sigh of relief!" Larmond told The Gleaner. "The closing of the road really affect us because we depend on passers-by to support our business and when the road close, we really feel it," he added, his face lit up with a smile.
Mellissa Williams, an employee of Gorge View Pub, inclusive of a shop, store and bar in Kent Village for two years, was equally enthusiastic.
"It feels like Christmas!" she laughed, as she stocks one of the shelves with slippers. "The place was dead and boring because we hardly had any customers. I am not going to be ungrateful because customers came, but not in that large number that we have when the gorge is open," she explained.
At the Petcom service station in Angels, motorists were busy filling their tanks, as well as grabbing a bite at the minimart.
"This morning I'm feeling very upbeat about the opening of the gorge. I can see the flow of customers, purchasing gas, as well as getting something to eat. It is so great," Derrick Patterson, chief executive officer, commented.
He said 20 of his 25 staff members were laid off during the closure of the thoroughfare which linked Kingston to the north coast.
"They were affected very badly, and now most of them are back at work this morning. It really feels good now that the gorge is open," a pleased Patterson told The Gleaner.