BSGC Ahead of Schedule for Family Island Road Works, Says President

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NASSAU, BAHAMAS – As today’s budget plan was revealed, we look back at one of government’s major infrastructure promises – the $100-million-dollar contract signed with the Bahamas Striping Group of Companies for roadworks across Eleuthera.

When Our News visited the island back in February, residents expressed growing frustration over the pace of the project and the conditions of the roads.

While the contract called for 163 miles of roadwork, only 40 miles had been completed at the time.

Today, our Chinasa Outten spoke with president Atario Mitchell for an update, who says work in Eleuthera is still moving forward, but ongoing water and sewerage works have created delays in some communities.

Atario Mitchell – President, Bahamas Striping Group of Companies

“Well Eleuthera, we are currently backpedaling to touch some of the areas that we have left behind due to the waterworks. The waterworks is in the last stage of being completed in the Bannerman Town area.”

“They’re doing the pressure testing now, and once that’s completed, we’re going to freshly service those lines and turn them over to water and sewage.”

Mitchell says crews are also making steady progress in Exuma, with more paving work expected in the coming days.

Atario Mitchell – President, Bahamas Striping Group of Companies

“We are currently still in the Rock Sound settlement doing some rotating there. Our next pavement day is set for Saturday, where we’re gonna be going on a tour with our funders…So the project is progressing steadily, and we have continued to meet our goals.”

The roadwork initiative was initially announced as a three-year plan, and Mitchell says just a year and a half into the project, the company believes it is currently ahead of schedule.

However, he admitted there have been challenges along the way, particularly when it comes to coordinating road paving with waterworks upgrades.

Atario Mitchell – President, Bahamas Striping Group of Companies

“The only thing we are having challenges with working with is the waterworks because it doesn’t allow us just to do continuous paving.

“We have to skip areas that that need waterworks, but we are in the process of ramping up our waterworks program in the coming months, so we’re going to be catching up and then getting that on target with that program as well.”

While much of the focus so far has been on the family islands, Mitchell says residents in New Providence can expect to see road repairs beginning soon.

He explained that many of Nassau’s main roadways still have a strong foundation, meaning crews will mostly be focused on milling and repaving existing surfaces.

Atario Mitchell – President, Bahamas Striping Group of Companies

“The majority of national roads, the base are still intact, so it’s just gonna be an option of milling and paving. So we have two milling machines already on the island and one more is en route. So the whole idea is to get the work done as fastly and correctly as possible.”