A WHOPPING budget of more than R14 billion has been allocated to the Northern Cape by the South African National Roads Agency SOC Limited (Sanral) to address the road infrastructure challenges experienced in the Province.
Sanral’s manager for the Western Region, which includes the Northern Cape and the Western Cape, Randall Cable, said the budget will cover a wide range of important road maintenance and construction projects in the Province over the next three years.
Sanral currently has a footprint in the Northern Cape that spans 4 409 kilometres, of which 952 kilometres was recently incorporated from the Northern Cape provincial government.
In addition to the routine and periodic maintenance projects, which cover all the major routes in the Northern Cape, such as the N1, N7, N8, N9, N10, N12, N14, N18 and R27, some of the major construction projects on the cards, which will be out on tender for construction over the next one to three years, include the improvement of several roads in the Province.
Improvements will be made to the N14 section 2 between Alheit an Keimoes, the N14 section 4 between Keimoes and Upington and the N10 section 11 between Vaalkoppies and Upington.
Special maintenance work will be conducted on the N10 section 11 between Uitkyk and Vaalkoppies and the N14 section 5 between Upington and Adeisestad.
The project will also include the upgrading of the R380 section 2 between Santoy and McCarthy’s Rest BP from a gravel to a surfaced road. This project will shortly go out on tender for design consultants.
Cable said road repairs will also be conducted in about 10 local municipalities in the Northern Cape.
“Budgets have been allocated for emergency repair under routine road maintenance (RRM) and more long-term repairs to roads in the Joe Morolong, Ga-Segonyana, Kgatelopele, Dikgatlong, Sol Plaatje, Renosterberg, Umsobomvu, Tsantsabane, Thembelihle, Richtersveld and Emthanjeni local municipalities.
“We welcome the commitments made by the Northern Cape Premier, Dr Zamani Saul, during his State of the Province Address and we look forward to working with the provincial government in effecting a modern, growing and successful Province,” said Cable.
He added that these projects will also boost the economy of the Province and provide employment opportunities to local communities.
“This will see ongoing road construction and its resultant economic opportunities for small businesses and local labour across the Province over the next five years, with work kicking off as early as mid-2023.
“These Sanral projects and investment in quality road infrastructure will not only bring with it improved mobility nationally, but will also bring meaningful economic opportunities to improve the quality of life for all Northern Cape communities.”
Saul, during his recent State of the Province Address, indicated that he was pleased with the interventions from Sanral.
“Despite the lack of a sufficient budget to service our provincial roads, we are committed to increasing access to affordable and reliable transport infrastructure. The Province transferred 16 roads over to Sanral on November 2, 2022. That will help the Province to focus on roads that are used mainly by local motorists.
“A pivotal development related to the latter is the fact that Sanral will also be opening an office here in the Northern Cape. This will help to strengthen the focus on our roads that are critical to the success of our provincial economy,” Saul said.
He added that great strides had been made to address potholes in the Province.
“Through Operation Vala Zonke the Province has completed 23,000 square metres of potholes and this was achieved by utilising internal road maintenance teams plus some work was outsourced, which created over 120 jobs.
“The Province will continue with the Contractor Development programme as part of developing small contractors to compete in the bigger market. In this regard, we are targeting an intake of 50 small contractors annually into the incubation programme.
“We are also very pleased with the strides made by the Northern Cape Construction Company. The first intake of staff completed their training and are currently sharpening their skills through conducting practical work in Kimberley,” Saul said.
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