GROUND
BROKEN FOR LINSTEAD TAXI STAND

From left to right:Mr. Andrew Pinnock, President, Linstead
Taxi association; Mrs. Sophia Azan, Custos of St. Catherine;
Minister Robert Pickersgill; State Minister, Dr. Fenton Ferguson;
Mr. Hensley Williams, Chairman, Transport Authority and Mrs.
Diane Watson, Managing Director, Transport Authority.
Ground
was broken on Friday, March 24, 2004 for a Taxi Stand in Linstead,
St. Catherine.
The
Stand is being built against a background where there have been
many challenges and frustration posed in the town of Linstead
by numerous instances of traffic congestion, particularly on
King Street. In making the decision to construct the Taxi Stand,
the following considerations were looked at:
•
The congestion stemming from illegal parking
• The ensuring convenience and safety of commuters and
operators
• The curtailment of activities by illegal operators
The
Taxi Stand is being built against a background where the town
has experienced significant growth over the last few years with
a lot of new businesses being established to support the growth.
As a corollary, the transportation sector has also expanded
to meet the growing demand, the result of which is congestion
and disorder.
Speaking
at the groundbreaking ceremony, Minister Robert Pickersgill
highlighted the fact that the construction of the Stand is another
significant step towards achieving a particular goal. “We
want to balance your needs with ensuring that we establish mechanisms
for monitoring the system so that it works efficiently, in an
orderly manner, for the benefit of all the stakeholders.”
The
Minister also disclosed that is a forerunner to the building
of the Linstead Transportation Centre. This Centre he noted,
will be started within three months and will include the following:
• Properly marked parking bays
• Covered waiting areas for commuters; with destination
signs
• Sanitary Conveniences
• Perimeter Fencing with pedestrian walk ways and
• A paved access road and storm drainage systems
The
construction of that Centre is expected to be completed within
eight to ten weeks.
Also
speaking at the ceremony were Dr. Fenton Ferguson, State Minister
in the Ministry of Transport and Works; Ms. Denise Daley, Councillor
for the Linstead area; Mr. Andrew Pinnock, President of the
Linstead Taxi Association and Mr. Hensley Williams, Chairman
of the Transport Authority.
The
Taxi Stand is expected to serve the communities of Wakefield,
Banbury, Ewarton, Bog Walk, Lluidasvale and Orangefield.
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