BASSETERRE, St. Kitts — Underground utility lines and pipes sometimes make it necessary for recently-paved roads to be cut open, according to Public Works Department Chief Engineer George Gilbert. He shared insight into why small sections of roads that were recently paved need to be cut open.

“It goes back to the placement of some utility lines which run underground,” said Gilbert. “It is standard practice for utility companies to be notified before any major road renovation takes place. This affords the opportunity for them to upgrade their infrastructure where necessary.

“The St. Kitts Water Services Department (WSD) is a key partner in this process,” he said. “Since the Island Main Road Rehabilitation Project began in 2018, several older pipes have been replaced. While most of the underground pipes were relocated to run parallel to the road, some of them unavoidably still run across the road.

“Some pipes were impacted during the road works,” explained Gilbert. “In the process, the pipe apparently got broken underground and started leaking. The pipes may be three to four feet underground.

“When you see it manifests itself on the surface, it has spread over a large area so that area has to be cut out,” he said. “The WSD has to go in to change out those pipelines.

“After repairs are completed, a period of time that is allotted before the road is repaved,” said Gilbert. “The allotted period of time is to ensure that there are no other damages in the immediate area that need addressed.”

After officials are satisfied, the road is repaved.

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BASSETERRE, St. Kitts — In an effort to be business-friendly and environmentally sustainable, the Ministry of Public Infrastructure will soon implement an E-billing system at the St. Kitts Water Services Department.

“The E-billing system that will be employed by the St. Kitts Water Services Department is one that “we believe will be convenient to our customers and eco-friendly,” said Public Works Department Communications Officer, Che-Raina Warner. “We are in the works; we have it in the pipeline, and we will also be reactivating the Water Services Department website so that customers can go to our website and pay their bills.

“This will mean that over time we will steadily decrease the number of paper bills that we distributed by mail,” said Ms. Warner. “We understand that some people who are not tech-savvy, so we can’t completely do away with paper, but the less paper we use the better it is for us.”

The St. Kitts Water Services Department hopes to soon implement its E-billing service.

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