EBD Road reopens nearly 12 hours ahead of schedule – INews Guyana
The East Bank Demerara Public Road was reopened to vehicular traffic this afternoon (Sunday, July 27, 2025) – nearly 12 hours ahead of schedule following the timely completion of asphaltic work on the new Demerara River Bridge.
The road, between the Ramada Princess Hotel and Nandy Park, was initially slated to be closed off to all vehicular and pedestrian traffic from Saturday, July 26, 2025 at 02:00h until Monday, July 28, 2025 at 04:00h.
The closure was to facilitate the laying asphalt on the bridge’s surface on the eastern side that runs overhead the EBD public road.
However, Public Works Minister, Juan Edghill, told this publication this evening that the works were completed way ahead of schedule.
“They were placing the asphalt on the carriageway [of the bridge’s surface] …And they finished and reopened the road since 5 o’clock [Sunday] afternoon – so almost 12 hours ahead of schedule,” Edghill stated.
The contractor, China Railway Construction (International) Limited, has been working around the clock to finish the US$262 million bridge in time for the August 31, 2025, deadline.
According to the Public Works Minister, this deadline is still on the cards.
“The bridge is scheduled for August 31 completion,” Edghill contended.
However, despite this assurance that the bridge will be completed next month – just one day before General and Regional Elections are held on September 1, Vice President Dr Bharrat Jagdeo, recently stated that the Government is prioritising safety and structural integrity over political timelines.
“They’re now hooking up the final span across. It will be very soon. You can see that if you drive across. But we’re not going to push them to meet an artificial deadline just for the sake of the elections. The people in Region Three and Region Four who use that bridge and every other region, see it every day. They know what’s the commitment we made. To get a structure up like that in such a short period of time, basically it’s three years after COVID. A structure like that nearing completion and with the highways, all the associated highways, is phenomenal,” the VP said at a press conference last week.
The new bridge would be a 2.65-kilometre fixed four-lane, high-span, cable-stayed structure across the Demerara River, with the width of the driving surface being about 23.6 metres.
With features like a bicycle lane, the new bridge will replace the ageing floating Demerara Harbour Bridge (DHB) and would bring to an end to the closure of vehicular traffic with a 50-metre fixed-high span to cater for the free and uninterrupted flow of vessels.
Once completed, the new bridge and extensive road upgrades along the East Bank of Demerara are expected to significantly reduce traffic congestion and travel time. It will also enhance connectivity between Regions Four and Three.
