New Amsterdam is on the east bank of the Berbice River, one of the main rivers in the country, giving its name to one of the three main provinces.
Until 2008, the coastal road crossed the Berbice via a ferry service. The process of waiting, loading, crossing, unloading and moving off took hours, enabling New Amsterdam and Rosignol on the west bank to earn income from trading with the passing and captive traffic. Both small towns are now much quieter, and probably poorer, but the Berbice Bridge - the 6th largest floating bridge in the world- has made the journey much quicker.
Like the Demerara Bridge outside Georgetown, this bridge has a retractable section across the shipping lane, which is operated each day at high tide to allow passage for ocean going vessels.
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| The Demerara Bridge- retracted- photo taken from the old stelling (landing) in New Amsterdam |
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