The Road (Saba)
The Road is the unofficial name for the cement road that connects the villages of Saba, Netherlands, a Caribbean island. It is nicknamed "The Road That Couldn't Be Built". It is the primary road on the island, spanning. It was constructed by local Sabans between 1938 and 1963, without the use of machines.
History
For most of its history Saba had no road, only footpaths and stone steps. Experts had expressed the opinion that it was impossible to build a cement road on the island. In the 1930s, a self-educated local engineer, Josephus Lambert "Lambee" Hassell, dedicated himself to the idea of creating a road.Phase 1: In 1938, cementing of the road's first section began: from Fort Bay and The Bottom. Until then, this section had been a path made of 200 uneven stone steps. Construction was carried out by local Sabans under the leadership of Erroll Hassell. In 1943, this first section of the road was completed and inaugurated, it was long and wide, and covered an elevation change, or slope, of.
Phase 2: By 1951, the road was extended to St. John's and then to Windwardside. This involved the removal of stone steps and cementing the paths.
Phase 3: In 1958, The Road was completed. Under the direction of Hassell, the road had been extended all the way to Hell's Gate, the village farthest from Fort Bay. In 1963, the road was extended to Saba's new airport at Flat Point. The Road covered from Fort Bay seaport to the airport at Flat Point.
Since then, branches have been added to the road, including branches to Well's Bay, to the Mount Scenery hiking trail, to the Sulphur Mine trail, and to Cove Bay. As of 2023, The Road was about long. An extension is planned for access to a new seaport under construction at Black Rocks since November 2025.