Staying on track with major upgrading of roads to key facilities
THE Eastern Cape department of roads and public works is still on track in ensuring that all roads leading to main health facilities, schools, tourism destinations and agricultural zones are in order.
The department has already spent more than R3-billion on tarring some roads and resurfacing others in some parts of the province.
These include the tarring of the road from the Tombo turnoff near Port St Johns to Isilimela Hospital and the resurfacing of the R61 connecting the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal.
Plans are also afoot to tar and upgrade more strategic roads leading to the Addo Elephant National Park and the Empilisweni District Hospital in Sterkspruit.
The welcome development follows years of complaints from villagers about hospitals and schools being inaccessible, while citrus farmers have also called for the road leading to Addo to be upgraded.
Department spokesman Mphumzi Zuzile said they were committed to ensuring all strategic roads were easily accessible.
“If you look at the collaboration we have with Sanral, there’s R600million that has been set aside for the road leading to Addo,” he said.
“If you look at all those roads that I am talking about, it’s either tourism or health facilities. That’s basically the plan of the provincial government.
“We are coming to all the hospitals and tourism attractions. For instance, the road to the Empilisweni District Hospital in Sterkspruit, the design has been finished.
“In the new financial year we will be going on tender to start the construction of that road.
“Design for the road to Canzibe Hospital in Ngqeleni has also been done. In January we will be going on tender so that at the beginning of the new financial year, the road to Canzibe Hospital is done.
“The bottom line is to deliver services to people faster. We want the roads going to these facilities to be done so that people can easily access them.”
Zuzile said they were spending over R3-billion on construction projects in the province.
These are on the R61 from Magusheni to Mbizana – a strategic road that connects the Eastern Cape to KwaZulu-Natal along the Wild Coast.
Another massive project is in Isiphethu, where Zuzile said phase one had already been completed for over R250-million.
He said more than R145-million will be spent on the upgrading of the 53km of road from Willowvale to past the Dwesa Nature Reserve, among other projects.
“This is helping the province in ensuring that all roads leading to main hospitals and tourism destinations are tarred . .. we have a backlog but the province is working very hard to ensure that the roads are maintained.”
In all the projects, Zuzile said local small business benefited as unskilled villagers were being employed.