The traffic lights at Robb and Camp streets will be operable in about a month’s time, according to Leon Goring of the Ministry of Public Works.
Speaking to this newspaper about traffic lights in and around the city that have not been working for a number of years, Goring indicated that they will undergo repairs as the year progresses.
The traffic lights at Robb and Camp streets have not worked for a number of years, despite the fact that the junction usually has heavy traffic. Goring told Stabroek News that the main reason was that there had been some vandalism, where batteries and other parts had been stolen. He also said that there had been problems sourcing the missing parts.
He said the control panels of the lights at Camp and Robb streets and Lamaha and Albert streets had been ripped out and submerged in water during an accident.
He said the ministry was in the process of reconstructing the panels to have the lights up and running again. Goring said the traffic lights at Camp and Robb streets will be operable in about a month’s time. They will hold off on fixing the lights at Lamaha and Albert streets, he said, as the road has to be widened to accommodate better turning.
Meanwhile, Goring said the traffic lights at the Stabroek Market square, which had not been working because of the many shacks in the area and heavy pedestrian volume will soon be back in operation. He noted that since the ministry has removed most of the shacks in the area, the pedestrian volume is not that much.
He added that there are workers now servicing the traffic lights, as this is a “suitable” time to have them restored to a working order.
Speaking about the traffic lights at the Vreed-en-Hoop junction which had been in a flashing mode for a number of years, Goring said a decision was taken to have the lights in the flashing mode because there is not much traffic to control.
He said the flashing of the lights is to alert the drivers manoeuvring the turn to exercise caution.
Referring in general to the malfunctioning traffic lights in the city and around the country, he said that they might be required to salvage parts from various non-operable lights and repair the most important ones.
