Gareth Manning, Sunday Gleaner Reporter

Although revenue is running below projection, TransJamaican Highway (TJH) Limited, the developer of Highway 2000, says it does not intend to apply for an increase in toll rates on its Portmore leg next month.

Traffic flow is below projection on all segments of the highway, said the company's managing director Trevor Jackson, because of some assumptions that were made by traffic consultants. He said they had assumed that once the Portmore toll road had opened, it would have caused the increase traffic flow along the highway by some 10 per cent, but that did not happen.

"There were quite some aggressive assumptions made in the financial model for reasons best known to the consultants at the time and I think that we will get there, but we are not there yet," Jackson told The Sunday Gleaner. However, he said the traffic flow is increasing daily and should be within target in six months. In addition, he said an increase at this point would not be reasonable because it has to be along the line of what people want to pay.

Furthermore, the company is allowed to apply for an increase in accordance with devaluations of the local currency against its United States (U.S.) counterpart, as well as increases in the U.S. consumer price index. But explained Jackson: "If the increases are too small then there is no need to increase the toll."

Slippage in Jamaican dollar

Since July, the Jamaican dollar has slipped by an average of about 70 cents against its U.S. counterpart moving from an average $66.01 to US$1.00 to $66.71 to US$1.00. Jackson said the Jamaican dollar needs to slip by at least $10.00 for developers to consider applying for an increase.

"It depends ... We can't have small increases because of the change factor ...We can't be giving a toll figure of $62.32 cents. It has to be $60 or $70, so toll collectors can deal with change," he explained.

Responding to Jackson's comments, president of the Portmore Citizens' Advisory Council, Yvonne McCormack, said the toll road operator should not expect an increase in the road usage anytime soon.

"The same people who are using the toll road now are the same people who will be using it six months from now," she said.

However, she is happy that the developers are not considering a toll increase at this point in time. But she is still contending that the current toll charges are too high. Motorists driving cars are currently charged $60 per passage of the toll booth.

"I wouldn't want to say I'm grateful, but I'm happy that the developers are not considering an increase [but] I don't think we are getting value for money," she said, noting there was still monstrous traffic congestion being created along the toll road. On Thursday, The Sunday Gleaner chanced upon such a scene of frustrated motorists travelling from Portmore in a stagnant line of traffic that seemed to stretch for at least two miles outside the toll booth into Portmore.