HIGHWAY 2000 CELEBRATES PASSAGE OF 5 MILLIONTH CLASS 1 VEHICLE

On Wednesday, January 26, the 5 millionth vehicle passed through the Vineyards Toll Plaza in Bushy Park, St. Catherine. Erica Harris-Maddix was the driver of the vehicle and won for herself a host of prizes. These include $5,000.00 in T-tag credit from Jamaica Infrastructure Operator (JIO), $5,000.00 of gas vouchers from Total Gas station, $5,000.00 auto detailing from Detail king, $5,000.00 bill payment credit from Paymaster, five new tyres from Tropical Battery and a free auto inspection by ASE Certified.

Speaking at the ceremony following the declaration of Mrs. Maddix’s car as the 5millionth, Minister Robert Pickersgill noted that Highway 2000 has several benefits in terms of savings on the cost of operating vehicles as well as savings in time. Continuing, he said, ‘In its construction and design, Highway 2000 is engineered for safety. Because this is a divided roadway, motorists do not navigate against on-coming traffic. So with good driving sense and a well maintained vehicle, Highway 2000 presents a premium motoring experience.’

The Minister further reminded motorists that in order to safely use the Highway at the maximum speed of 110 km per hour, their vehicles must be in top condition. He pointed to a research which said that one third of all accidents on the highway are attributed to bad tyres.

The Minister also made mention of the fact that the Highway patrol is equipped to monitor the roadway with the handing over of 4 state of the art patrol vehicles. Officers have been specially trained to operate these vehicles.

Turning to other benefits of the Highway, Minister Pickersgill said. ‘ The statistics have shown that in the corridor where Highway has opened to traffic, there has been a significant reduction in motor vehicle accidents and fatalities. This will also translate over time into a significant lessening of the demands on the country’s trauma and overall health services, as well as in the cost to the public purse.’ He noted that businesses are now able to reduce production costs formerly due to lengthy delays over winding and narrow roads. And for parents who have to take their children daily from say, Clarendon and St. Catherine to schools in Kingston can now do so in less time thereby giving more quality time at home with them.

Highway 2000 is symbolic of the Government’s response to the demands for better roads generally and road maintenance programmes. It underlines the government’s commitment to the pursuit of a comprehensive road development, improvement and maintenance programme.