First coat of tar rolled onto Roseau's new West Bridge

The new West Bridge in the centre of Roseau has been given its first coat of tar as the official opening approaches.

The development, phase one of the Roseau Enhancement Project, is will be declared open following a ceremony at 4.30pm on Monday, 1 May.

Funding for the bridge – totalling US$6.7 million – came from the island's Citizenship by Investment Programme.

'Priority at the capital's heart'

The contract for the new bridge was signed on 13 April 2016, with work commencing just over a week later on 22 April.

This follows a 2015 decision by the government to label the rebuilding of the West Bridge as a priority project.

This move was to improve the capital both structurally and aesthetically.

The passage of Tropical Storm Erica in August 2015 also had a negative impact on the Roseau River.