THE ROAD along Station Hill, St Michael, was reopened about two weeks ago and business owners are breathing a sigh of relief.

However, not everyone is satisfied that enough has been done.

The SATURDAY SUN spoke to people who live and do business along the recently reopened stretch of road on Thursday to get their take on the development.

Spokesperson for Paramount Funeral Home and Taxi Service, who wished his name withheld, said the closure had "handicapped" the business and it was only now trying to get back on track.

"A lot of people would have used other companies [during that time] and some of our customers could not even find the place [because of the detours]," he said.

Shopowner Yvonne Shepherd agreed. She said Station Hill was like a "ghost town".

"It affected me a great deal, it is only now starting to pick up slowly. Still, this road needed fixing for a long time, so I'm happy with the work," she said.

But Sonia Alleyne and Tony Beckles still have some concerns. They pointed out issues pertaining to speeding, bus stops, and burst pipes.

"We want either road humps in the road or a pedestrian crossing because traffic is passing here too fast and we have a 'million' little children around here," said Alleyne.

Beckles complained that the bus stops were too far apart which either caused people to wait for public transportation at places other than the stops or forced those, such as the elderly who needed to catch a bus to walk too far.

They also pointed out a damaged pipe which they said had been leaking from before the road was closed in June and a "dangerous" blind corner.

The SATURDAY SUN observed that the work was not completely finished as there was a sidewalk on one side still under construction at the Bush Hall/Station Hill junction.

Acting Chief Technical Officer with the Ministry of Transport and Works, Nash Lovell, said those were considerations they would be looking into.

"We do accept the operating speed may increase but unfortunately there was no space for pedestrian safety [during the initial construction] but the traffic section will definitely be looking at placing pedestrian crossings," he said.

As for the sidewalk, Lovell said only the west side was under construction as there was a land issue on the other side which first had to be resolved.

He added there were always complaints over the position of bus stops but they would be taking another look at the existing situation as part of the "overall package". (CA)