A team set up by Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller is to meet with community leaders of Portmore on Friday, April 13, to discuss their concerns regarding the Portmore toll.

Information Minister Donald Buchanan told The Gleaner on Monday that a government team, including himself, would be meeting with the residents.

In mid-March representatives ofumbrella organisations in Portmore, St. Catherine, served an eight-point petition on the Prime Minister.

Petition

The petition, which was signed by more than 4,000 persons, called for changes to the toll being charged on the Portmore leg of Highway 2000.

It also called for a reduction of the toll for class one and two vehicles; a freeze on toll rates for 24 months; the widening of the Marcus Garvey Drive exit from the toll road, and the expansion of the Mandela Highway.

The residents had also demanded a suspension of the toll rates until the daily traffic gridlock is addressed. The residents of Portmore are contending that it is unfair for them to pay a toll to use a congested roadway.

Motorists travelling on the almost four-kilometre toll highway are charged between $60 and $200, depending on the size of their vehicle.