Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller(left) is greeted by Andrew Watt (centre),resident engineer of the Half-Way Tree Transport Centre, during a tour of the Constant Spring Road-located facility on Monday, while Belgian Ambassador Herman Portocarero (second left) and Senator Anthony Hylton, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, look on. - Winston Sill/Freelance Photographer

SHOULD YOU be among the many Jamaicans who feel that the Half-Way Tree Transportation Centre might be an eyesore in the future - whenever the metal structure starts to rust - you can put those fears to rest.

Andrew Watt, the resident engineer for the state-of-the-art transportation centre, says the materials used for the construction of the roof and certain parts of the structure will not rust.

"With this roof, there is no corrosion whatsoever. There is a very good paint system, three layers, so there is no (corrosion) problem at all," Mr. Watt told The Gleaner.

No major maintenance

The engineer added that aspects of the structure are made of aluminium and this does not require major maintenance.

"The main maintenance required is on the platform. Keeping the place clean, the bathrooms ... everywhere," Mr. Watt said.

The engineer spoke with The Gleaner on Monday when Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller and the Belgian ambassador to Jamaica, Herman Portocarero, toured the facility.

The building of the centre is being facilitated by a loan from Belgium. Mrs. Simpson Miller, who arrived an hour later than expected for the scheduled 4:00 p.m. start of the tour, has emphasised that while the project is beautiful, it needs to be maintained.

For his part, Mr. Portocarero said the transportation centre represents more than an achievement of steel, aluminium and concrete and is, rather, his country's "collective gift to the public and people of Kingston".

The transportation centre, for which former Prime Minster P.J. Patterson broke ground in March, 2005, is being constructed at a cost of just under $5billion. It will accommodate buses on two levels and will also include a third-level terrace for the public and an administrative as well as utilities block.

The construction of the centre constitutes an upgrade of the public transport system and will provide for, among other things, the centralisation of buses in one facility and shelter from the elements for commuters.

It is expected to be completed in September.