LIMPOPO, named after
a river which forms the
border with Botswana
and Zimbabwe, is South
Africa’s northernmost
province – and its poorest.
The N1 is the essence
of its economy,
a link with sub-Saharan
countries and an
important trade route
with them. It runs from
Cape Town through the
central part of the country
right up to, and then
through Limpopo.
For regional economic reasons the N1, as part
of the national road network in Limpopo, is also
important as the backbone of the province’s growth.
This is reliant on mining, agriculture and tourism –
all three economic spheres where excellent roads
maintained in excellent condition are a necessity.
That is exactly what SANRAL is doing in this
province, knowing that the economic growth that
will be boosted by these roads will contribute to
the reduction of poverty, inequality and unemployment.
It is well worth mentioning the more important
projects aimed at reaching this ideal.
The ring roads taking through-traffic around
the two important urban areas, Polokwane and
Musina, are of particular importance. Both will
relieve congestion within the urban area while
easing traffic flows on the important north-south
trade and tourism route.
Important on a different level are the completed
bridges around Botlokwa on the N1 – between
Polokwane and Beit Bridge. These have increased
safety for pedestrians as well as for passing traffic
and were constructed in response to cries for
assistance from local communities.
SANRAL responded, an outward sign of an
almost instinctive part of the agency’s approach to
all its construction programmes – work closely with
the local communities along its roads, try to use as much local labour as possible, look for local blackowned
SMMEs as subcontractors.
Closer to Gauteng the important first steps have
been taken in the major construction project to
upgrade the dangerous but vital Moloto Road. Work
has started with the construction of traffic circles at
major intersections and the closing of dangerous
illegal accesses.
Looking at some of the figures will underline
the importance of these projects – some 50 000
commuters use the Moloto Road daily while
a thousand heavy vehicles will drive around
instead of through Musina once the ring road is
completed.
All the work SANRAL undertakes must be seen
against the background of the National Development
Plan: national roads are the most important part of
the country’s infrastructure and vital to economic
growth.
Nandi Madalane is MEC for Public Works,
Roads and Infrastructure
WITHOUT decent national roads our people and the country’s
economy would struggle. As SANRAL, not only are we committed
to our mandate to manage South Africa’s road infrastructure;
we place particular focus on making sure that our roads are
meticulously engineered for all road users.
Since SANRAL took over a total of 3 645km of Limpopo’s
roads, they have been substantially improved. This is key to
the flourishing agricultural, mining and tourism industries in the
province.
Road safety, as a critical matter in our business, has been
adopted as one of our pillars. In view of this, the completion of
the N1 Botlokwa pedestrian bridges has presented substantial
benefit to those who live and work in this area. Pedestrians are
the most vulnerable road users and that is why we are determined
to ensure that pedestrians and cyclists are considered in the
improvements of existing road infrastructure and construction of
new roads.
Our routine road maintenance projects will go a long way
towards adding to the safety of all road users, particularly in the
implementation of some of our major projects in the province,
notably the Moloto Road upgrade. We are making good progress
with the N1 Musina and Polokwane ring road projects, which
involve the construction of new interchanges and bridges. The
SANRAL team is also resurfacing the R518 from Lephalale to
Marken, R524 from N1 (Louis Trichardt) to Punda Maria Gate and
the N1 from km 70 to Musina.
We’ve made progress in Vuwani in terms of the distribution of
our routine road maintenance work. A project liaison committee
(PLC) was set up at the end of September 2017 and its involvement
has made a positive impact. The PLC brought all Vuwani/Elim
stakeholders under one umbrella, which made it much easier for
the site team to attend to the community’s needs.
Due to higher-than-usual temperatures, there have been some
minor delays in the completion of our projects. However, we are
dedicated to our high standard of engineering in reaching the
finish line.
Working with communities through fruitful engagement, we
remain devoted to delivering on our intention to contribute to
the eradication of poverty, unemployment and inequality.
Skhumbuzo Macozoma is SANRAL’s CEO
