WESTERN BUREAU:

Work on the North Coast Highway Improvement Project (NCHIP) between Falmouth, Trelawny, and the Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay, St. James, is slated for completion on January 15, according to the National Works Agency (NWA).

Janel Ricketts, NWA community relations officer for the western region, said the inclement weather over recent months affected the progress of the project, but contractors had committed to working on weekends and throughout the festive season to meet the deadline.

Danish Contractor, E. Pihl and Sons, is undertaking work on the 27 kilometres of roadway under Segment Two of the NCHIP at a cost of US$50 million (J$3.35 billion). The figure also includes building and designing fees.

By March 2007, the rehabilitation of 22 of 27 roads, targeted between Montego Bay and Falmouth, will be completed, Ms. Ricketts added.

The NCHIP is a sub-project of the Northern Jamaica Development Programme, implemented between 1989 and 1990 to effect improvements and to develop the physical infrastructure along Jamaica's North Coast.

The principal objective of the programme is to support tourism, population growth and the general development of the corridor.

The project has been divided into three phases: Segment One - Negril to Montego Bay; Segment Two - Montego Bay to Ocho Rios, and Segment Three - Ocho Rios to Port Antonio.