SANRAL spends R2.2bn on roadworks in Eastern Cape

© Jorge Chaves – za.fotolia.com

Speaking during a public lecture at Walter Sisulu University in East London on 3 August, South African National Roads Agency Ltd (SANRAL) CEO, Nazir Alli, underscored their commitment to the region through road infrastructure programmes on behalf of regional and provincial government.

The programmes will benefit local and regional economies by laying the foundation to further improve the attractiveness of region for foreign and direct investment, create safer and sufficient walkway and road-crossing infrastructure for pedestrians, and improve road surface and safety conditions.

Most national roads

New data released by SANRAL shows that 1,070km (23%) of the national road network of 4,544km in the Eastern Cape, the province with the most national roads out of all provinces, is being upgraded, preserved or rehabilitated and that the whole 4,544km is being maintained throughout the year.

In the Eastern Cape SANRAL is busy on the N2, N6, R61, R63, R65 and R67 with projects worth:

• R750m for periodic maintenance covering 600km of the national road network.
  
• R372m for special maintenance over a distance of 208km.
  
• R460m for rehabilitation of the national road network covering 122km.
  
• R648m for special upgrading projects on 140km.

Alli said that SANRAL road infrastructure development programmes are supporting the goals of the country's National Development Plan, and stressed that world-class road for the Eastern Cape will also address poverty, unemployment, income equality, while supporting the broader goals of national and regional development, transformation and empowerment.

New statistics released by SANRAL also shows the value of conventional engineering and routine road maintenance contracts awarded to 625 SMMEs between April 2014 and March 2015 to be at R805m, and 69.76% of beneficiaries were black-owned companies.

Latest project

The latest SANRAL project is the special maintenance of a 28km stretch of the N2 road between Bramlin Interchange and the Coega IDZ in Port Elizabeth. The project entails resurfacing, drainage improvements and localised repairs of existing pavement failures over 18 month period.

Towards the interior between Engobo and Port St. Johns, the R61 road development and upgrading project is preparing the region catalytic socio-economic projects such as the proposed Wild Coast special economic zone. New roads will also stimulate tourism to a pristine but underdeveloped coastal region along South Africa's Indian Ocean coast.

SANRAL projects here will also improve safety of pedestrians through several special walkways, pedestrian bridges, and to protect the assets of rural livestock farmers and to reduce motor vehicle accidents several agricultural underpass culverts are being constructed.