By Siphiwe Nyathi
Mbombela - Motorists using the N4 highway have been urged to be patient when travelling over the Easter weekend.
Chief executive officer of toll road management company Trans African Concessions (TRAC), Graham Esterhuysen, said TRAC is hard at work to ensure that holiday makers reach their destinations safely.
“We sympathise with their desire to reach their destinations as soon as possible and therefore we advise them to plan their trips properly and efficiently and to consider alternative routes where possible,” he said.
TRAC spokesperson Solange Soares-Nicholson said starting in Pretoria, Gauteng and ending in Maputo, Mozambique, the N4 experiences extremely high volumes of traffic during the Easter period as thousands of holidaymakers and migrant workers use the route to reach destinations in Mpumalanga and Mozambique.
"The highest traffic volumes are expected on Thursday, April 17 and Monday, April 21. In an effort to prevent traffic congestion, construction and maintenance work will cease throughout the route for the duration of the Easter Weekend.
"However, road users travelling to or from Malalane in the Lowveld should note that the Stop/Go between Mbombela and that town will still be active,” she said.
She said with the road infrastructure in need of structural improvement, TRAC initiated the reconstruction of the road.
She said this is usually done in sections of approximately six kilometres, which once broken up cannot be used until the work is completed.
“Although it is always advisable to have temporary traffic bypasses available during such construction phases, this section of road known to many as the Crocodile Gorge is situated in an extremely challenging and difficult topographical area, making it impossible for the establishment of a temporary deviation,” Soares-Nicholson said.
She said TRAC is well aware of the long delays sometimes experienced at this construction site, especially on Fridays and days preceding public and school holidays.
"However, due to the mentioned width restrictions, we are limited to providing one-way traffic through the Gorge during construction," she said.
She said given the current state of the construction phase, the best TRAC can do to minimise delays during the coming holiday season is to reduce the length of the Stop/Go.
“We will also work hand-in-hand with the SAPS, Emergency Services and the Lebombo Border Control Operational Co-ordinating Committee throughout the Easter weekend to ensure civil order is maintained and road regulations are obeyed at the Stop/Go and at the Lebombo Border post,” she said.
Road users are also invited to stay in touch with what is happening on the road through regular traffic updates on Twitter @TRACN4Route. – SAnews.gov.za
