One major entrance and exit for the City of Belmopan is currently receiving some upgrading. Residents may have noticed that road demarcation works started within the City about a month ago. Well, yesterday, we caught up with Mayor Simeon Lopez, who told us that the upgrades currently being done on the Forest Drive are in connection with the Traffic Safety Enhancement Project.

Simeon Lopez, Mayor, Belmopan
This is a City Council project to accommodate the pilot project. As we reach near Constitution Drive, there needs to be a three lane division there, one to turn left, one to turn right and one to accommodate vehicles turning into Forest Drive. However, the pavement was so narrow that it could not have accommodated those three lanes. So what the Council is doing is widening this road and paving it accommodates those lanes as the vehicles reach near Constitution Drive. Eventually it will merge into a two lane curve.

PlusNews reported in an earlier newscast that the Belmopan City Council had hopes of turning Forest Drive into a one -way street. We asked the Mayor what is the council's current position on that proposal.

Simeon Lopez
We are still sticking with the design proposed by the consultant to continue doing a two way lane. After listening to the business community, they had proposed to assist us in putting a round about there, but the area is too small to accommodate a roundabout. However, we will not divert from the two way lane. So they still have the two way traffic and eventually, after everything is finished and an education program is completed, we hope to employ more traffic wardens and place one of them here to direct traffic as well, because this marking is mainly for safety.

We also asked Mayor Lopez to discuss any additional infrastructure works in the pipeline for the City of Belmopan.

Simeon Lopez
You know we have already done the Jamaica, Pacific and Atlantic Streets. We have the little shorter streets to do now and we hope to commence that before Christmas and that will be the Barbados, Cayman, St. Vincent, Bermuda and Bahamas Streets. Then that area will be completed. Otherwise, we are still waiting for the municipal development project get kicked off, where we will upgrade the market, the bus terminal area, the Raccoon Street area and the Nim Li Punit Street. However, it is very discouraging and disappointing, the pace at which this project is going. We will keep holding on, because I know that the staff is already employed at the Social Investment Bond, it's just to complete everything and get work going.

Mayor Lopez returned from abroad only recently and has promised PlusNews a full interview on other City issues Tuesday of next week. We will keep you posted

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