STAPP 081 South Oropouche Southern Main Road

The Southern Main Road is a major road in

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...

running from

Curepe Curepe is a town in the East–West Corridor of Trinidad and Tobago. It is located west of St Augustine and east of St Joseph. Curepe adjacents the St. Augustine campus of the University of the West Indies. Many of the students attending the uni ...

in the north through

Chaguanas The Borough of Chaguanas is the largest municipality (83,489 at the 2011 census) and fastest-growing
– Afra ...

Couva Couva is an urban town (48,858 in 2011 census) in west-central Trinidad, south of Port of Spain and Chaguanas and north of San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago, San Fernando and Point Fortin. It is the capital and main urban centre of Couva–Tab ...

San Fernando San Fernando may refer to: People *Ferdinand III of Castile (c. 1200–1252), called ''San Fernando'' (Spanish) or ''Saint Ferdinand'', King of Castile, León, and Galicia Places Argentina *San Fernando de la Buena Vista, city of Greater Buenos ...

, and

Point Fortin Point Fortin, officially the Republic Borough of Point Fortin, the smallest Borough in Trinidad and Tobago is located in southwestern Trinidad, about southwest of San Fernando, in the historic county of Saint Patrick. After the discovery of pe ...

to Icacos in the southwest, over a now discontinuous length of 120 km.

History

The Southern Main Road was the major north–south road in Trinidad until 1957 when the Princess Margaret Highway (now the

Uriah Butler Highway The Uriah Butler Highway, sometimes referred to as UBH, is one of the major north–south highways on Trinidad in Trinidad and Tobago. It is named after Tubal Uriah Butler. It runs from Champs Fleurs to Chaguanas where it meets the Sir Solomon ...

) was built to more directly connect Chaguanas with the Churchill-Roosevelt Highway, and in the 1970s when the

Sir Solomon Hochoy Highway The Sir Solomon Hochoy Highway, sometimes referred to as SHH, is the major north–south highway on the island of Trinidad, in Trinidad and Tobago. It runs for 35.6 km (22.1 mi). It connects Chaguanas with Gandhi Village, Debe. It meets the U ...

was built to connect Chaguanas with San Fernando. The Southern Main Road remains the major road connecting San Fernando with Point Fortin, but plans are underway to extend the Sir Solomon Hochoy Highway to Point Fortin. The Southern Main Road makes its way through communities such as Caroni, Cunupia, Chaguanas, Freeport, St. Mary's, McBean, Couva, Pt. Lisas, California, Claxton Bay in Central Trinidad, before passing into Marabella, Vistabella and San Fernando. In the areas just listed, the Southern Main Road (sometimes simply referred to by the locals as "de main road" or "de old road") contains most of the business establishments.

Description

Route

The Southern Main Road remains a major thoroughfare for many communities, especially in the central and southwest areas of the island. It begins at a junction with the

Eastern Main Road The Eastern Main Road is a major road in Trinidad and Tobago running from Port of Spain in the west to Manzanilla in the east. The towns of the East–West Corridor are strung along its route. Until the construction of the Churchill–Roosevel ...

in Curepe, and runs due south towards the Caroni River, where it runs alongside La Paille and Caroni villages. The road then turns south again and runs through Cunupia and Enterprise before entering Chaguanas. In Chaguanas, it makes up the major roadway in the centre of Chaguanas. It then runs alongside the Sir Solomon Hochoy Highway towards Chase Village, eventually diverging from the highway into Couva, Claxton Bay and Marabella before terminating at Zurcher St at Vistabella in San Fernando. This is the first continuous segment. The second segment begins in Duncan Village, running through Bamboo Village and La Romain, before joining the South Trunk Road and running along the Gulf of Paria towards Oropouche. At St. Mary's, the South Trunk Road turns south and the Southern Main Road continues into Rousillac and towards La Brea, Vessigny and Guapo before arriving in Point Fortin. After Point Fortin, the road continues towards Cedros, passing through Chatham and Irois, and finally passing through Cedros onto the southern terminus of Icacos, a small fishing village at the southernmost tip of Trinidad.

Features

Having been built in the 20th century, the majority of the road is two lanes except for a few sections that are four lanes; Curepe Interchange, Caroni South Bank, Chaguanas Busy Corner, Marabella and South Oropouche. Many business in the communities serviced by the road are located along the road and as such there are few high-speed sections of road; it is subject to frequent stopping and slow traffic to the aid of pedestrians and incoming traffic.

References

* {{coord missing, Trinidad and Tobago Roads in Trinidad and Tobago