Joseph Proposes Concrete Roads and Drainage Overhaul to Tackle Rural West Flooding

Joseph Targets Roads and Flooding Crisis in St. John’s Rural West

Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party candidate Michael Joseph says deteriorating roads and chronic flooding in St. John’s Rural West are among the most urgent issues facing residents, outlining a series of infrastructure works and proposed engineering solutions during a televised interview this week.

Speaking on ABS’s Know Your Candidates programme, Joseph pointed to Golden Grove Extension and Cooks as areas with some of the worst road conditions in the constituency, where residents in some cases still rely on unpaved surfaces due to incomplete private developments.

“I would say, without a doubt, the worst roads currently exist in the Golden Grove Extension area and the Cooks area,” Joseph said, explaining that some developers had failed to deliver basic infrastructure such as roads, water and electricity.

He said government-supported works are now underway following advocacy efforts, with multiple contractors engaged to build out road networks in those communities. Because of waterlogged conditions in parts of Golden Grove Extension, Joseph said the approach has shifted from traditional asphalt to more durable concrete.

“We have to ensure that we put in climate-resilient roads… so it cannot be the traditional asphalt roads,” he said.

Joseph indicated that completing the road network in those areas could take between one and two years, citing the scale of the work and the need for more resilient construction methods.

Beyond roads, the candidate highlighted the long-standing flooding problems associated with the “Big Gutter” along Federation Main Road, describing it as a complex issue that has persisted despite repeated cleaning efforts.

Initial attempts to address the problem focused on clearing debris, but Joseph said subsequent assessments revealed a deeper structural challenge linked to water flow and rising sea levels.

“What they determined was that the volume of water… as well as the rising sea levels,” were contributing to the problem, he said, noting that one of the outlet points is blocked, forcing water through a single channel.

Engineering studies have since identified several possible solutions, including the installation of industrial pumps to remove excess water or the creation of a retention pond to improve drainage capacity.

In the meantime, work is ongoing to replace thousands of aging concrete slabs covering sections of the gutter, some of which were damaged during earlier clean-up efforts. Joseph said a local contractor has been engaged to manufacture and install the replacements, a decision he described as supporting community involvement in the project.

“I felt it was important to lobby for small contractors in the community… so there’s a level of community ownership,” he said.

Joseph framed the infrastructure push as part of a broader effort to improve living standards in the constituency, arguing that government intervention is necessary even where private development agreements have failed.

“As a government, we have a responsibility to make sure the standard of living of our people is high, even where developers don’t deliver,” he said.

St. John’s Rural West is expected to be one of the closely watched constituencies in the April 30 general election, with infrastructure and quality-of-life issues emerging as central themes in the campaign.

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