THE INSTALLATION of street lights along Tubman Boulevard cannot be left unnoticed. This is the first post-war long stretch of street lights in the capital, Monrovia. At 173 years, the topic of street lights must not be any big news, sadly, this has never been a priority until the Weah-led administration, hence, a reason to celebrate.
STREET LIGHTING provides a number of important benefits. It can be used to promote night time security and to increase the quality of life by artificially extending the hours in which it is light so that activities can take place. Street lighting also improves safety for drivers, riders, and pedestrians.
MANY FATAL night time crashes that have occurred on our streets may not have occurred if there were street lights that provided better visibility.
IT CAN BE recalled that the night time police checkpoint at the Capitol By-Pass intersection was removed due to lack of street lights, which the police authority thought endangered the safety of its officers.
MANY PEDESTRIANS have fallen prey to snatchers and armed robbers who often took advantage of Monrovia’s dark roads to hold pedestrians under the knife to collect their mobile phones, money and other valuable belongings from them.
THAT IS WHY we believe that President George Weah deserves a commendation for the initiative.
OTHERWISE known as the Special Presidential Streetlight Project, the US$2.3 million undertaking is being implemented by the Ministry of Public Works with technical support from the Liberia Electricity Corporation (LEC).
ITS IMPLEMENTATION is phased into three lots: the first is visible from ELWA Junction to Vamoma House in Sinkor; the second from Vamoma House to Broad Street-Ducor; and, then, the third would run from Johnson Street to St. Paul Bridge, according to officials of the Ministry of Public Works.
WHILE THIS is an appreciable initiative of the Government of Liberia, it is also key that measures are put in place for the maintenance of these street lights. We have witnessed dormancy of the few traffic lights in Monrovia due to lack of maintenance and or the inability of the government of Liberia to have them repaired. It is our hope that these street lights would not end up the monuments of traffic lights we have in Monrovia.