Patterson Slams New Ogle-Eccles Highway as “Zero Value for Money” Despite $133.8 Million Price Tag
Tiana Cole | HGP Nightly News
Just days after the government celebrated the official commissioning of the new $133.8 million Ogle to Eccles four-lane highway, former Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson is pushing back, calling the road a costly project that delivers little value to taxpayers.
In an exclusive phone interview with HGP Nightly News, Patterson argued that the completed project reflects significant reductions in scope compared to original plans laid under the APNU+AFC administration in 2019, while costing significantly more.
“In the end, I think we got really… zero value for money as a project,” Patterson said bluntly.
According to Patterson, the same consultants who worked on the current version were involved in designing a 25.4 km stretch, including a 15.34 km four-lane alignment that was thoroughly planned and costed at $175 million US. He noted that the current road is only 7.8 km long, with critical elements such as intersections and connectors omitted from the final build.
“They said the road we designed was overengineered and made changes. Yet, somehow, it ended up costing three times more,” Patterson pointed out.
He also questioned the broader pattern of inflated costs under the current administration, describing it as a “modus operandi” that raises red flags about transparency and accountability.
“Every project they touch, they inflate… There’s got to be some level of corruption,” he alleged.
Patterson further noted that to suggest the current $133.8 million highway is the same project previously scoped under the coalition administration is “a deliberate attempt to mislead the public.”
With plans now underway to spend a similar amount to extend the road to Diamond, Patterson warned that taxpayers are being shortchanged twice—paying more for less, while development remains incomplete.
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