Police are investigating the fatal shooting of a 61-year-old mechanic who was gunned down on Thursday night in Belize City. Police report that the victim, Carlos Alvelar, was attacked shortly after 8 p.m. on Coney Drive by two men riding a motorcycle. Reports are that one of the assailants fired several shots at close range before fleeing the scene.
Officers arrived shortly after the incident and found Alvelar lying motionless. He was rushed to the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital but was declared dead on arrival.
The motive behind the attack has not been determined , and no suspects have been detained.
In July 2024, the European Union (EU) funded and launched the E-Mobility Pilot Project in Belize City, introducing two electric buses. The project, budgeted at 4.5 million euros, aims to advance low-carbon transportation with electric buses. It includes the deployment of electric buses, the development of a national transit app, and the creation of a comprehensive transport policy.
Nonetheless, City Shuttle Limited expressed concerns about Belize City’s electric vehicle (EV) bus pilot project, citing potential financial impacts on June 25, 2024. The company, which has served Belize City for over 35 years, argues that the pilot project could severely affect its revenues. In a letter to the Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s Katherine Meighan and the Belize Business Bureau’s Arturo Lizarraga, City Shuttle Limited stated, “Our objection to the proposed EV Bus Pilot is however rooted in the reality that the Pilot i.e. (The EV buses managed by the Neil Hall and the City) will have a significant adverse impact on our daily gross revenues and financially destroy City Shuttle Limited within a few months of the launch.”
The company criticised Mayor Bernard Wagner’s claim that higher fares for EV buses would not affect City Shuttle Limited’s clientele, saying, “It is very difficult to defend the Mayor’s “assumptions” to support his thesis, i.e., that City Shuttle Limited and the other stakeholders’ clientele will not be affected in any way due to the impact of the additional BZE $1.00. being levied by the EV buses. Logic and common sense dictate that a portion of City Shuttle clientele will indeed make the shift. (especially in the early months after launch).”
City Shuttle Limited questioned the understanding of the Mayor and Neil Hall, noting, “The assertions on TV by the Mayor and Mr. Neil Hall confirm one of two things: either (i) Neither of them understand the fundamentals of the bus transportation industry or (ii) the objectives of the Mayor and Mr. Neil Hall are not as presented to the nation.”
In response, the UNDP and Belize City Council clarified that the pilot project’s goals include transforming the transport sector and exploring new business models in an official statement issued on August 14, 2024. According to the statement, the goal is to assess the buses’ performance under private-sector management, evaluate financial feasibility, and develop a business case for a potential public-private partnership to support both sectors.
The statement explained, “We recognise the concerns of the private sector and their critical investment in Belize’s bus industry. As a result, this pilot project is designed not only to transform the transport sector but also to explore innovative business models and financing mechanisms, which are vital for cultivating a more advanced, private sector-driven development process,” the statement noted. “To achieve this objective, the project incorporates the adoption of EVs to enhance both inter-district and intra-city transit systems. As an executing agency for the intra-city pilot, the Belize City Council, through adaptation of its existing structure, manages and operates two electric buses as a part of its broader sustainable cities program. In contrast, the inter-district pilot will be managed and operated by the private sector. To support this initiative, the Cabinet has authorised the use of a two-year contract for managing and operating three additional electric buses,” it added.
The E-Mobility Pilot Project aims to improve low-carbon transportation and integrate modern energy services. It includes two intra-city and three inter-city electric buses. It aims to create frameworks for expanding electric vehicle use with contributions from key stakeholders, including financing bodies and government agencies.
Thirty-three-year-old Michael Usher was fatally shot on Monday night in Belize City. It happened a few minutes before eight o’clock on Flamboyant Street. Investigators say that Usher was walking when he was approached by an unknown man who fired several shots in his direction. Usher was shot several times and pronounced dead on arrival.
According to reports, police are looking for two suspects.
A State of Emergency is being implemented in southside Belize City and specific sections of the Cayo District. Statutory Instrument 58 of 2024 states “a public emergency has arisen in the part of Belize consisting of the part of Belize City known as the Southside, and which is specified in Schedule I, and in the part of Belize known as Hattieville Area, Roaring Creek Village, Another World Area, Roaring Creek Village, and Young Bank Area, Camalote Village, all in the Cayo District.”
The SOE will remain “in force for a period not exceeding one month; but may be extended from time to time by a resolution passed by the National Assembly for further periods.”
Parts of Belize City and parts of the Cayo District in which a State of Public Emergency Exists:
1. All that area bounded on the South by George Price Highway, North by the Belize River, East by Central American Boulevard and West by Lake Independence Boulevard, including all streets and areas within.
2. All that area bounded on the East by West Collet Canal, West by Central American Boulevard, north by Cemetery Road and south by Race Course Street and North Creek, encompassing all streets within.
3. All that area bounded on the East by Central American Boulevard, North and West by George Price Highway and South by Fabers Road, encompassing all streets within.
4. All that area bounded on the East by Central American Boulevard, on the West by George Price Highway, South by by the Caribbean sea North by Fabers Road, encompassing all streets within.
5. All that area bounded by the North by Belize River, South by Cemetery Road, West by Central American Boulevard and East by Magazine Road, including all streets and area within.
6. All that area of land in Belize City bounded from Corner South Creek and Fairweather Street to corner Fairweather Street and the Caribbean Sea to the corner Kraal Road and the Caribbean Sea to the corner Caesar Ridge Road and Kraal Road up to the corner Caesar Ridge Road and Gill Street and corner Caesar Ridge Road and Central American Boulevard and South Creek, corner Central American Boulevard and South Creek to corner South Creek and Fairweather then corner Fairweather and the Caribbean Sea.
7. All that area of land known as or comprising the entire Hattieville Area, Roaring Creek, Village, Cayo District.
8. All that area of land known as or comprising the entire Another World Area, Roaring Creek Village, Cayo District.
9. All that area of land known as or comprising the entire Young Bank Area Camalote Village, Cayo District
