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Archive -Seychelles

Third phase of Victoria bypass operational |03 May 2017

 

 

 

• Pedestrians, drivers urged to exercise caution 

 

The third phase of the Victoria bypass, a two-way road starting opposite the Oceangate House exiting on Latanier Road is open to vehicular traffic.

The road is expected to ease traffic flow from Anse Etoile to the New Port, up towards the east coast and further south and vice versa.

Yesterday morning while giving details on how the road will function, the chief executive of the Seychelles Land Transport Agency (SLTA) Parindah Herath made a strong appeal to pedestrians to take extra precautions when crossing this new road and for drivers to drive responsibly as both vehicles and pedestrians get use to this new stretch of road.

Mr Herath explained that all vehicles travelling from the north i.e. Glacis, Anse Etoile all the way down and going to the New Port, STC Hypermarket, Roche Caiman and further east can use this stretch of road.  Motorists driving on 5th June Avenue round the Bicentenary Monument wanting to go up to New Port, Roche Caiman and further up can also use this road using the existing one way entrance opposite the Bicentenary Monument.

“Motorists cannot use this new road to go to Mont Fleuri for instance because there is no turning point when reaching Latanier Road to join traffic at the Le Chantier/Unity Monument roundabout,” Mr Herath explained.

He went on to explain that vehicles coming from the south travelling to English River, Anse Etoile can enter onto the new stretch of road either from New Port on Latanier Road or from the Le Chantier  roundabout.

Since the new road is open there have been various instances where vehicles coming from the New Port or further south are breaching the rules when reaching the entrance of the road to go up to Inter Island Quay, the IOT or continue up to Anse Etoile. Some are instead going in the opposite direction towards the Bicentenary Monument.

Mr Herath said the road is new and drivers are bound to make a few mistakes when driving and it will take some time for them to get use to all the signs and adapt to the new way of driving on this new stretch of road but with continuous guidance from traffic police stationed in the area, shortly drivers should get use and abide by the rules and follow directions as indicated.

Mr Herath also pointed out that part of the parking space in the area has also been consumed by the new road project and therefore unmarked green space further near the waterfront is being taken up for new parking space. Work is still ongoing to level the ground before bitumen is laid and new markings indicating parking lots are drawn.

As this part of town is a very busy one with lots of people crossing the road to access services situated in the Oceangate House, crossing the road has become more dangerous for pedestrians. Mr Herath said the SLTA knows this and is monitoring  the situation on this new road while it discusses with the Transport Department and the Road Transport Commissioner’s office as to the best place where road crossings, speed bumps and where necessary railings will be put in place for pedestrians’ safety. Together with that Mr Herath noted that as the SLTA continues to monitor the situation on the new road more adjustments will be made in due course either to counter speed or deal with congestion at different intervals where necessary.

But until all these are in place Mr Herath is calling  on both drivers and pedestrians to exercise extreme caution when driving on and crossing this new stretch of road.

Meanwhile Mr Herath pointed out that while the road has opened to traffic, work to put in place a good drainage system, street lights and other road signs are still ongoing.  

He said one of the two bus shelters next to the ex-children’s playground will soon be pulled down to make way for only one longer, more modern shelter to cater for the large number of commuters who use the facility.

He also noted that this third phase of the Victoria bypass road is another project under the Victoria Traffic Management Master Plan and another similar project will be a bypass road to connect Stevenson Delhomme Road to the Bel Air Road to alleviate traffic travelling from Beau Vallon towards Mont Fleuri and the south.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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