CHRISTIANSTED – From Queen Mary Highway to downtown Christiansted, major infrastructure construction projects will be taking place on St. Croix starting as soon as this week.
With the Virgin Islands Waste Management Authority and Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority almost complete with their projects in the downtown area, residents, visitors, and business owners in downtown Christiansted will soon be able maneuver the roads comfortably.
The Department of Works, through its contractor Virgin Islands Paving Inc. (VIP), has already begun preparing to complete road repairs in downtown Christiansted. Last week, VIP mobilized its equipment and on Monday, May 13, the contractor began the clearing and grubbing process on Market Street.
Market Street, Hill Street, East Street, Queen Street and Prince Street are all slated for milling, paving and drainage improvements over the coming weeks as part of a contract funded by the Department of Interior. The remaining roads, minus King Street, will be repaired through the Transportation Trust Fund at a later date. King Street, a federal-aid route, will be repaired as part of a Federal Highway project in the design phase. Weather permitting, this project has an estimated completion date of August 2024.
Meanwhile, improvements to sections of Queen Mary Highway are being prepared for repairs. These sections include the Sunny Isle signal light intersection, Sunny Isle to Barren Spot, Barren Spot to La Reine signal light, and Sunny Isle to Ricardo Richards/Sunny Acres. DPW anticipates beginning these repairs within the next two weeks. The Queen Mary Highway projects also have an estimated competition date of August 2024.
Emergency road projects, such as repairs to the collapsed culvert in Estate La Reine are also in the works. The La Reine culvert, which causes the roadway closure on May 8th, has since been repaired as of May 13, 2024, by DPW contractor Grace Civil.
Mahagony Road and Airport Road projects are also coming to fruition. Issues with the bidding process among others pushed back the start dates, however, these roads remain on the list of projects to begin this calendar year.
The department is urging motorists to adhere to all safety controls and directives from on-site flaggers throughout this reconstruction period.