The Sixth Road (Coastal Highway Upgrading) Project was funded in part with a grant from the United Kingdom Caribbean Infrastructure Partnership Fund (UKCIF), a loan from the Caribbean Development Bank and counterpart contribution from the Government of Belize.
Project Description
The Coastal Highway is currently considered a distributor or secondary road and provides an alternative link for vehicles travelling between the northern and southern districts. The 59 km gravel road connects the GP Highway (at Mile 30 and the village of La Democracia) to the Hummingbird Highway (at Mile 9 and the village of Hope Creek). The route of the roadway is mostly low lying and has inadequate drainage. It passes through the Central Belize Jaguar Corridor and the Manatee Forest Reserves, which are protected areas. There are two villages along the corridor, Gales Point Manatee and Mullins River , which are located approximately 1.5 km and 3 km respectively off the Highway.
Project Scope
The Coastal Highway is to be upgraded to full paved standard in accordance with AASHTO standards. The highway is comprised of 58km of road which will have improved climate resilience; a new earthen drain on both side of the highway, concrete box and pipe culverts along the highway, pavement of the entire highway with Double Bituminous Surface Treatment (BDST) and include road safety features i.e. line marking, road studs, traffic signs, crash barriers, bus lay-bys and traffic calming measures. There will also be the construction of six new bridges and the rehabilitation of four existing bridges.
The CHWY project will be divided into 2 Lots: