By George Alleyne
Barbados’ lone electricity
supplier will be shipping in a
standby generator this month
to back-up its grid in event
of equipment malfunction as
happened weeks ago, and it
has announced plans to buy a
brand-new system next year.
This public commitment
coming from Barbados Light
and Power (BL&P) represents an
about-face from the company’s
previously stated position that
it had no planned new capital
investment because of Barbados’
declared goal of becoming
fossil fuel-free by 2030 would
render such machinery obsolete
in 10 years.
The BL&P statement followed
two successive days, Nov.
18-19, of island-wide powercuts,
the likes of which Barbadians
have not experienced since the
world oil crisis of 1973.
By the second day of electricity
outage, BL&P Managing
Director, Roger Blackman
explained that in addition to
contaminated oil entering generators,
Keeping Older New Yorkers
Safe on Sidewalks
Caribbean L 36 ife, December 20-26, 2019
“right now about 50
percent of our generating capacity
has passed its retirement age
and that certainly is a factor”.
According to Barbados
TODAY newspaper, he further
said that the reason the company
was not investing in replacement
of the generator plants
was because the country was
moving to 100 percent renewable
energy, and BL&P would
therefore be retiring all its fuel
plants by 2030.
Further, he hinted at a foreboding
near future for the
island by indicating that the old
plant made outage rates challenging,
and power restoration
time longer.
But Prime Minister Mia Mottley
would have none of it.
She demanded better from
the power company and
requested the presence of Rick
Janega, CEO of the Canadian
parent company, Emera Corporation,
who had to fly in from
Canada.
Following a closed-door
meeting with the BL&P top
brass she subjected them all to
queries from journalists in a
media conference.
At that press briefing Mottley
said of BL&P, “they have
been in Barbados for over 100
years, and for that reason to
whom much is given much is
expected”.
She suggested that for its 100
years-plus of patronage Barbadians
gave BL&P, the company
was now short-changing the
nation.
The prime minister pointed
out that aside from a few generators
bought in 2005, “some
were purchased when I was in
primary school and those would
have to be replaced even though
there were attempts to repair
them in the past. That is not
acceptable.”
“The question is whether
they can procure immediately,
tomorrow, generating capacity,
or whether they would have to
rent in the interim and have
generating capacity brought on
the island until they can procure
a permanent one.
Barbados Prime Minister, Mia Mottley. Photo by George Alleyne
“This government must
give investors and Barbadians
the comfort that the things to
which we have become accustomed
— access to light and
water — must be returned to
normalcy and high standards.”
The upshot of Mottley’s blunt
talk to the power company’s
embarrassment is that the
island suffered no more powercuts.
Then towards the end of
November, government and
BL&P issued a joint statement:
“the Barbados Light & Power
Company yesterday agreed to
urgently add another 15 kilowatts
of generating capacity
to its electricity grid, part of
the process of guaranteeing its
capacity.”
Barbados’ power supply
remedy hastened
With an increasing number of
people on New York City sidewalks
and streets, all New Yorkers must
keep in mind the importance of
pedestrian safety for frail or slowpaced
older adults.
Older New Yorkers walk more
than older adults in any other city in
the United States, despite crowded
streets. For someone with balance or
mobility issues, an accidental bump
from a rushing passerby could cause
a life-threatening fall.
Falls are the leading cause of
fatal and nonfatal injuries among
older Americans. What’s more,
experiencing a fall as an older adult
is both physically and emotionally
painful. To avoid this, older
pedestrians are cautious. They walk
in the crosswalk and use crossing
signals, but if struck by a vehicle, they
are more likely to be injured.
The Department of Transportation’s
(DOT) Safe Streets program is an
initiative focused on the safety of
older pedestrians. In 2018, older
adults ages 65 and older accounted
for 13% of the City’s total population,
but 50% of pedestrian traffic fatalities.
Accidents from motor vehicles are
the largest concern. As we work to
reduce these traffic fatalities, we must
not forget the importance of cyclists
observing the rules of the road to
keep vulnerable pedestrians safe.
Nearly eight hundred thousand
New Yorkers ride a bicycle regularly,
and this number is increasing. Bikes
are a healthy and environmentally
friendly solution to the city’s
crowded transportation system, but
without safety considerations and
enforcements, they can be dangerous.
Not yielding to a pedestrian
might save a few seconds on a bike
commute, but it could also cause a
severe injury. Cyclists must utilize
the City’s designated bike paths or
lanes and leave the sidewalks open
to pedestrians. New York City has
1,240 lane miles of bike routes. In the
last five years, the City has expanded
on-street bike lanes by more than
330 miles, with 66.1 miles installed
in 2018.
The City is doing its part to keep
pedestrians safe. Alongside DOT,
the New York Police Department
(NYPD) makes sure cyclists abide
by the rules of the road. This year,
the NYPD has issued 37,916 moving
violations to cyclists, compared to
34,257 in 2018, an 11% increase.
I am confident that there is
enough room for cyclists and
pedestrians alike. As we strive to
be a truly age-inclusive City that
accommodates dwellers of all ages
and with disabilities, I encourage
all New Yorkers to look out for their
neighbors on the sidewalk.
Lorraine Cortés-Vázquez
is Commissioner of the New York
City Department for the Aging.
Prior to joining the de Blasio
administration, she served in
executive leadership roles with
AARP, EmblemHealth and
other organizations. She also
served as New York’s first Latina
Secretary of State.