The Western Cape Department of Infrastructure (DOI) has completed a R43.5 million project to upgrade and perform emergency repairs on Main Road (MR) 276, also known as Boontjieskraal Road, located near Bot River.
According to the provincial government, the 6.7km road connects the N2 highway between Bot River and Caledon on one side and the R43 highway between the N2 and Villiersdorp on the other side.
Jandre Bakker from DOI stated that before the drainage infrastructure and related works could be finished, adverse weather conditions forced the department to reallocate its internal resources to address the effects of adverse weather during both 2023 and 2024.
Bakker noted that certain sections of the road exhibited severe cracking due to high fill conditions.
The contract for the project included several rehabilitation tasks on two sections of MR276 that were significantly affected by cracking.
These tasks involved constructing a 100m retaining wall to support the road at high fill areas, building a retaining wall in an eroded cutting, and installing concrete-lined and sub-soil drains to manage water flow.
It also included erosion protection measures, installing a rumble strip would be added to the southbound lane near the railway level crossing on MR276, and replacing fencing, along with the installation of gates at legal road accesses.
In addition, work involved the installation of guardrails at high fill locations and the updating of road signs and markings.
During the ceremonial opening of the road, Western Cape MEC for Infrastructure, Tertuis Simmers, announced that the project created 113 short-term work opportunities and generated 6 885 person-days of work.
He said the R11.8 million was spent on procuring goods and services from targeted enterprises, and three local enterprises and four emerging contractors benefited from the project.
“This road is of both economic and agricultural importance. The road further cuts travel time by regular users of the route, which used to be a gravel road. I am often asked how my department decides on which roads to upgrade from gravel to surfaced roads, and a variety of factors are taken into consideration,” said Simmers.
The MEC said these factors range from the important metric of vehicle counts to the condition of the road, future importance of the road and role in the broader network, economic importance and others.
“This is, however, always done within a very tight fiscal envelope, and we have to make tough decisions.
“While we do our bit by constructing and maintaining quality transport infrastructure, I call on road users to do their part and use these assets responsibly,” the MEC added. – SAnews.gov.za
