by Mindy Aguon

Guam - Tiyan has become a part of the daily commute for tens of thousands of island residents, but the construction of the Tiyan Parkway will bring that to a screeching halt for more than two years. Residents who live in Tiyan and the thousands of motorists who traverse through Central Avenue on a daily basis can expect major changes to their routine.

"In February or March of next year they will be closing Central Avenue. Central Avenue is the road that connects us from Route 8 in Barrigada in through Tiyan," said Public Works director Joanne Brown. She says that closure is going to have a tremendous impact on the public. It's estimated that an average of 14,000 cars go through Tiyan each day. With the main artery, Central Avenue shut down, motorists can expect traffic in the surrounding areas to be clogged as a result.

"Once they close that road it's going to have a very significant impact. It may for some of your landowners that are down in the old officer side and even those of you who are in Tiyan because there will only be one way in and one way out. And that will be the road that is in front of the airport authority," she added.

Public Works has completed an environmental assessment and has determined that the parkway will be constructed in two phases. The first requires the acquisition of land from the airport and the closure of Central Avenue to allow for the use of the newly extended runway in early 2013. Phase I will run from the former GOD headquarters out to Route 8 by Cars Plus.

Brown said, "From the time DPW gets the green light to begin construction it's going to take us about 24 months to complete that roadway so that's going to have an impact certainly for those of you that may own land certainly on that part of the Tyan area so now you probably have to go down through Tamuning and back up through Barrigada."

Phase II the project is expected to take even longer as the government will have to acquire property that was returned several years ago from original landowners. Nine lots are marked as affected areas for this particular phase. And landowners who attended Thursday's public hearing expressed concerns that they may not get their fair share; some even expressing concerns about how officials did their math.

One resident said, "For you to come up with a benefit cost ratio and total estimate, that's wrong."

Guam Transportation Program's Cliff Guzman noted, "Don't be discouraged because a lot of people are being affected by this. This is your property that was given back to you so there's a process. The process is first the appraisals and then the negotiations and the options are they can pay you for the property, they can find other property through a land exchange."

And while the two-plus-year delay may cause some road rage and test motorist's patience, the government estimates that in the end when the parkway is completed, the monetary savings to island motorists in reduced travel time and reduced fuel consumption will average about $2.7 million a year.

On a side note, airport-related commercial development along the Tiyan Parkway corridor is projected to add up to $59 million per year to the economy.

The public review and comment period is for 30 days. Residents can find the environmental assessment and more information on the Tiyan Parkway by logging onto GuamTransportationProgram.com.