– 16 lanes connecting from Buzz Bee Dam to Ogle
President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali announced that the design for the overpass road across the Heroes Highway has been completed, marking a major step forward in linking the East Bank and East Coast of Demerara.
During an inspection of ongoing works at Buzz Bee Dam on the East Bank of Demerara on Tuesday, the president explained that the overpass will connect directly to the East Coast on the eastern end and then to Vreed-en-Hoop on the western end.
“This is going to be a major game changer, this highway, because it is going to open up thousands of acres of land, farmland, commercial land, industrial land. It’s going to put to use assets that were idled,” President Ali stated.
The overpass forms part of Phase II of the president’s national traffic management plan, which also includes a major new interconnection linking Buzz Bee Dam to the Eccles dumpsite road, then to Aubrey Barker Street, Ogle, and eventually Enmore.
When completed, this route will create a total of sixteen lanes from Buzz Bee Dam to Ogle, significantly improving travel time and easing congestion across the East Bank and East Coast corridors.
President Ali underscored that precise engineering and modern drainage design are central to all the new road works.
“The water conservancy is in close proximity to where we are. The drainage canal will now be interconnected and redirected around the roundabout so that we don’t lose any drainage capacity, but gain drainage capacity because of the designs of the drainage canals on both sides of the road that we’re doing,” he explained.
The head of state noted that all advanced drainage and excavation works are expected to be completed by March of next year, weather permitting.
Meanwhile, design and preparation for the Land of Canaan to Soesdyke highway are to be completed before the end of 2025.
This project will require innovative construction techniques due to the swampy and sandy terrain.
“If you notice how they build flyovers in certain parts of the Everglades and places around the world, where they build through swamps, they use a lot of overpass-type designs—so that is one of the options we are looking at in terms of cost efficiency,” the president said.
Additionally, the road network linking Cummings Lodge to Aubrey Barker Street is on track for completion by mid-November.
With the new Bharrat Jagdeo Demerara River Bridge (BJDRB) now operational, commuters are already benefiting from four new lanes, two leading back to Georgetown and two linking traffic from the Ogle–Eccles roundabout onto the bridge.
In a move to further modernise Guyana’s transport infrastructure, President Ali revealed that a feasibility study is underway for a commercial railway connecting the East Coast and East Bank. The proposed line is expected to run along the high dam near the four-lane Buzz Bee Dam highway, with the study set for completion within six weeks.
Collectively, these infrastructure initiatives are reshaping the East Bank–East Coast corridor, enhancing mobility, expanding housing and economic zones, and positioning the corridor as a key driver of Guyana’s national development. (Department of Public Information)
