A new four-lane highway in Region Three, running from the new Demerara Harbour Bridge to Parika, will open thousands of acres of land for housing, large-scale agriculture projects, tourism and other activities, President Irfaan Ali announced on Saturday.
The President and a high-level team from various government ministries and departments and the Army, toured the possible alignment of the road, stopping at all the intersections and bridges from Canal No.1 Polder all the way to De Kindren, West Coast Demerara.
Within a month, the President said, the entire stretch all the way to Parika will be graded as a special team works on the plans which he hopes to see completed by the end of April next year.
The President has pulled together a team of experts to plan the project, saying the local expertise is available to do so instead of hiring foreign consultants for millions of dollars.
According to President Ali, the road will clear the pathway to construct a road from Parika all the way to Bartica.
The 56-kilometre road from Parika to Bartica is expected to run along the Del Conte Road on the East Bank of Essequibo and then to Monkey Jump and then to Bartica. The crossing across the Essequibo River to Bartica could be via a barge initially, Minister of Public Works Juan Edghill said.