Roadworks on Caledon to end in November
Alida de Beer
Motorists who regularly travel along Caledon Street, a main feeder route, have been gritting their teeth - especially during peak hours - since the start of a major reconstruction of the road some weeks ago.
A stop/go system is in place at both ends of one lane of Caledon Street while construction is taking place on the other. Most of the side roads have been closed off, with the only access via Darling
Street from the east and Sandy McGregor from the west.
Hilland and Associates environmental consultants said in a statement on Monday that construction is on schedule and work should finish early in November, within the contract period.
'Inconvenient, but manageable'
Nadine Gray, manager of Lord Caledon B&B, said the road works are inconvenient for their guests and staff, but have not had a major effect on business. "We use the short cut through Darling Street to avoid the stop/go points. There is of course some noise from the construction, but that can be expected during road works."
Finn Rautenbach, manager of the Garden Route Botanical Garden, said their visitor figures are down slightly, but there is still a decent number of regulars who are not put off by the works. "We are trying to do more events to combat reduction of gate figures and lately we have been promoting the garden as a venue for weddings and corporate events too."
Hilland said priming of the BTB (bitumen) layer on the eastern lane began on Monday 6 August. Residents on that side of the road were requested to drive over the sidewalk to the nearest exit point at Darling Street, or to either end of Caledon Street. The bitumen will be laid section by section.
The process started from the railway line. Once the eastern lane is opened to traffic again, motorists are urged to drive with caution as the new layer will be slightly lower than the kerbs and existing manholes. Hilland said the final asphalt layer will be done when the roadworks have been completed on both lanes.
The contractor on the project has been experiencing vandalism of his signage that is either being stolen or deliberately damaged, driven over or moved. An appeal was made to anyone who has witnessed such incidents to report these to Hilland. Additional flag men teams have been placed at the stop/go points to address concerns about safety.
Members of the public can contact Hilland and Associates at admin@hilland.co.za or
082 305 5097.