We seem to be very adept at asking for plans and creating plans, but once the plans are in our hands, we often fail to execute them.

The host of the talk show “A Look at the Community” recently called for a plan for Road Town, as it is looking less than desirable for residents and tourists alike.

Looking back two decades, I seem to recall a big buzz around the Road Town Charette and the Road Town Physical Master Plan Improvement Plan. In 2007 there was the Road Town Improvement Project Report, and nine years later a Beacon editorial again called attention to that report and the deplorable state of the capital, suggesting that it needed serious TLC.

In 2020, another Beacon editorial referred to the 2013 and 2014 promises made by government for a city development plan and new legislation. The editorial also made reference again to the 2007 Road Town Improvement Project Report and other “well-conceived plans that never came to fruition.” It concluded, “With careful planning and good policy, Road Town’s potential is boundless.”

Another Beacon editorial, in February 2023, referred yet again to the 2007 Road Town Improvement Project, concluding that dangerous traffic, dilapidated sidewalks, and other concerns make the capital a “deadly accident waiting to happen.”

According to a government news release of May 25, 2023, there was to be a community meeting to discuss plans for the city of Road Town.

 

‘Not short’ on plans

We are seemingly not short on reports and plans. Where we are definitely short is in executing those recommendations and plans. Should we not therefore examine the reason for such failure? Since frequent reference has been made to the “2007 Road Town Improvement Project Report,” should we not have a closer look at it and set an intention to execute its recommendations?

And, since we have experienced several decades of failure in the arena of executing, wouldn’t it be wise to look at what other countries have done to successfully improve their capitals? Around the world, many countries have engaged the best global techniques and expertise to work alongside local input in order to achieve the boundless potential they had sought for their cities.

 

National plan

One might also ask where the Road Town Development Plan fits into the National Sustainable Development Plan launched last year. I would add that the “best global engagement” strategy could also be sensibly applied to any given section of the infrastructure — in particular, road engineering and drainage.