Once again, the Minister of Public Works and Environment, Jaché Adams, is appealing to road users to be patient and careful, as recent rain has carved out and deepened the craters on our public roads.

To hear the minister’s statement, it sounds like the cause of the pothole problem is the fault of the weather and the need for greater pothole reporting, but that is not the case.

The potholes are caused by long-term lack of planning and underinvestment in our highway system. Yes, for years the asphalt plant has needed to be replaced to improve production capability and reliability, but that could have been well on its way to correction by now.

The new $5.2 million asphalt plant was originally scheduled for delivery to Bermuda at the end of 2024 and was expected to be up and running by April 2025. However, in February 2025, Lieutenant-Colonel David Burch, the Minister of Public Works, said the component parts of the facility had still not been shipped to Bermuda. There was no reason given as to why. Since then, Bermuda has received some of the equipment, including the shuttle buggy material transfers vehicle, but the main production plant is in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

In November 2025, delivery of the asphalt plant was further delayed for approximately three months to allow for an independent assessment on relocating the Government Quarry. Since then, there has been no announcement about the outcome of that assessment but in the minister’s most recent statement he said that the new plant was expected to arrive at the end of this summer. Although it is not clear whether the troublesome shipping and logistic issues that seemed to have plagued its arrival have finally been rectified.

So, as we continue to wait, the questions are:

• Where will the asphalt plant be located, and when?

• What is the timeline and what is needed to get the new plant into production?

• Once the plant is up and running, can we expect to see comprehensive highway paving plans and activity, including paving of both sides of a road and application of a centre line?

There is much to be done, which will require short and long-term road improvement plans that are supported by adequate investment to get our roads back to a reasonable condition.

Beyond the immediate requirements, Bermuda deserves to benefit from further commitment to ongoing investment in rehabilitation, road maintenance and continuous upgrades.

• Linda Smith is Shadow Minister of Public Works and One Bermuda Alliance MP for Southampton West Central