DPW sets priority list for road projects

by Ken Quintanilla 

Guam - More than $246 million in federally-funded road construction projects have been underway on Guam since 2008. Now with a new administration in office, the head of the Department of Public Works is making a list of projects prioritizing those that have seen constant delays.

DPW met with its consultant PB Americas to go over several of its priorities regarding road construction projects in the upcoming fiscal period 2012 to 2014. Director Joanne Brown says the priority of projects depends on funding and how soon the designs for the projects are ready to go, telling KUAM News, "So all those factors have to be put on the table, and as we factor them out, the cost of it, how soon are they in terms of design, how soon are they ready to go, how soon have we addressed land acquisition issues then that kind of readjusts where it sits on the list."

Currently at the top of the list is the road construction project within Tiyan, as the director continued, "As you know, that's a very pressing issue on how we're going to address Phase I of Tiyan; if and when Central Avenue is closed by the Guam Airport Authority, how that's going to impact Phase II leading down to Home Depot and that construction. But in addition, the Route 10-a stretch that runs from Marine Corps Drive all the way to Route 16, which is the thoroughfare, which goes in front of the airport where the plans are addressed those design and construction projects and how does that fit into the big picture."

Second on the list is Hamburger Road in Harmon, which may take a little longer due to the completion of the project's design and some land acquisition issues that need to be addressed. Third is the Asan and Agueda bridges followed with culverts of the Cross-Island Road project. Fifth on the list is the Bile and Pigua Bridge projects. The sixth and final item on the priority list is Ypao Road, which that goes past the SDA Clinic down to the intersection of the Hilton Guam Resort in Tumon.

The list allows them to get into a particular section of the road, complete it and move on. Brown said, "I don't want to continue to spread out the paint, so to speak. And everywhere you turn you got a road project construction and delays, but some of these decisions unfortunately aren't being made because of what our desired schedule are, some of these decisions are because structurally there are major safety issues that need to be addressed, and that will move that particular project up on the priority listing versus what we would desired to construct it."

Ultimately, brown says her priority is to maintain the highway program on Guam.