Piles in the seabed for the new jetty.
ANGUILLA--Progress on the Road Bay Port project, which began in December of 2019, is clearly evident. Phases one and two, funded through a grant from the United Kingdom Government of US $13.5 million, covers the construction cost for a new jetty capable of accommodating cargo handling of roll-on/roll-off (RO/RO) and lift-on/lift-off (LO/LO) ships. It will feature four RO/RO berths and three LO/LO berths. Phase two will include construction of a new warehouse located within a new cargo marshalling area, to be constructed on recently acquired land.
Dredging to lower the seabed is approximately 40 per cent complete and the sand is being pumped onto the land area which will become the cargo marshalling area. Additionally, piles have begun to be driven into the coastline at a rate of approximately 6 per day, and will increase when the island’s border closure is lifted and the second crew of specialized pile-barge handlers can enter the island. To date, 80 of the total 423 piles have been inserted.
UK Engineer Rob Somers with the governor’s office said, “The current existing jetty was recently improved and upgraded and will be retained for a time, but the new jetty will give additional capacity and longevity to the port.” The length of the new jetty will extend an additional 15 metres beyond the existing jetty, and will feature a turning circle enabling 40 foot containers to be safely turned around on the jetty and driven away instead of having to reverse off the jetty.
View of site of new jetty and existing jetty.
Expected benefits of the new jetty include a facility capable of processing medium to long-term levels of cargo movements safely and efficiently including customs and immigration functions, a better cargo handling experience for shippers, agents and the public, the ability to handle higher volumes and tonnage of cargo, the capability to employ the use of more capable port equipment, and the capacity to safely and efficiently service multiple vessels of various sizes and off-loading options simultaneously. Also included is shore protection work, a new marshalling area, a new guard house and improved parking areas.
Although the ongoing coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic has negatively impacted the delivery of materials and arrival of skilled machinery operators due to border closures, work has continued with the aim to keep to the 16-month contract completion timeline of March 2021.
