Namibia's most dangerous road to be upgraded

The N$239m project, to be completed by Aveng Grinaker-LTA, entails upgrading the B1 to a dual carriageway between Windhoek and Okahandja, from 24.5km to 34.5km. It will comprise 691,000m3 of mass earthworks and 324,000m2 of single seal surfacing, says Aveng Grinaker-LTA Civil Engineering divisional managing director, Richard Evans.

The company will also undertake the construction of two interchanges, each with a north and south bound bridge, Evans notes. In addition, a 4.5km service road will be constructed to create access to the plots next to the carriageways.

The B1 is the main corridor connecting Windhoek to the north and to the west coast, and needs to accommodate a large amount of traffic on a daily basis. Because this specific piece of road had earned the reputation as the most dangerous stretch in Namibia, the government, in conjunction with the roads authority, decided to upgrade it to a double carriageway in order to make it safer for all road users.

Construction work are due for completion in April 2016.