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Prime Minister the Hon. Bruce Golding has defended Government's decision to increase both the departure and telephone taxes, noting that the call to roll them back is a normal response from the public. The departure tax was increased from $1,000 to $1,800 while there has been an increase from 20%- 25% on telephone cards, telephone calls and instruments. Mr. Golding...

Minister of Transport and Works, Hon Mike Henry, says that the Traffic Management System to be implemented in Montego Bay, St. James will be activated by the end of October. Speaking at a Press conference Thursday (October 1) at the Office of the Prime (OPM) Western Division, in Montego Bay, Mr. Henry said that he will be working with the...

The National Works Agency (NWA) is conducting a programme of road repairs in sections of Portland, as it pursues its mandate of development and maintenance of roadways throughout the country. The programme involves the rehabilitation of 1.3 kilometres of roadway between Port Antonio and Hectors River, and 8,500 metres square of sheet patching to other sections of the same corridor....

Minister of Labour and Social Security, Hon. Pearnel Charles, was honoured Wednesday morning (September 23) by the Transport Authority (TA) for his contribution to the public transport sector. Mr. Charles, who was Minister of Public Utilities and Transport, 1982-1989, in the previous Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) administration, was honoured for, among other things, the creation of the Transport Authority in...

September 20-25 will see Jamaica's maritime community once again celebrating Maritime Awareness Week. This period marks an important calendar event as it affords the maritime industry an opportunity to articulate and show some of what it does, while also allowing for reflection and rededication to the many tasks that face us, such as contributing to the reduction of the levels...

Construction work has been completed on seven of 10 bridges, which are being built under the Canadian R.A. Murray Bridge Programme, Transport and Works Minister, Hon. Michael Henry, has informed. In his 2009/10 Sectoral Debate presentation to Parliament on September 15, Mr. Henry outlined that the seven bridges completed under Phase II of the US$44.2 million programme are: the Black...

The Government has announced that several operational changes are to be made at the Tinson Pen Aerodrome, in Kingston, within the next 12 to 18 months, in preparation for its move to the Caymanas area of St. Catherine. In a document tabled in the House of Representatives last week by Minister of Transport and Works, Hon. Michael Henry, it was...

The new Waterloo Road Bridge, in St. Andrew, was officially opened today (September 20), by Minister of Transport and Works, Hon. Michael Henry. This is the first phase of the construction of a four-lane bridge at the site. This should alleviate traffic problems in the area, as during construction, traffic was restricted to one-way. The bridge is now open to...

Thirty four kilometres of roadway between May Pen and Trout Hall, in Clarendon, is to be repaired at a cost of US$27.7 million (J$2.5 billion). The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) Fund for International Development (OFID) will provide US$20 million (J$1.7 billion), representing 72 per cent of the budget, with the Government financing the remaining 28 per cent in...

The Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED) is to provide upwards of US$11.6 million (over J$1 billion) in funding assistance for the rehabilitation of the Tom's River to Agualtavale (Junction) road in St. Mary. In his 2009/10 Sectoral Debate presentation in the House on September 15, Transport and Works Minister, Hon. Michael Henry, informed that the overall cost of...

The Transport and Works Ministry has reported that the Airports Authority of Jamaica (AAJ) Group netted $239.7 million in surplus in the last financial year, which is $14.5 million above projections. The financial performance of the AAJ Group, up to February 2009, also surpassed the results for the corresponding period in the previous year. Based on figures from the 2009/10...

Work on the multi-million dollar Washington Boulevard Improvement Project in St. Andrew, is slated to commence in November. In his 2009/10 Sectoral Debate presentation in Parliament on September 16, Transport and Works Minister, Hon. Michael Henry, informed that the project, to be undertaken at a cost of US$23.3 million, will incorporate the eastern corridor of Washington Boulevard, from the Molynes...