Anger over Addo road closures
No prior notification of delays for area’s hospitality industry
ROAD closures related to the transportation of wind turbine components have left members of the hospitality industry in and around Addo fuming. Components en route to the Grassridge Wind Farm, situated along the R335 between Port Elizabeth and Addo, will be loaded onto abnormally large trucks at the Port of Ngqura. Some roads between the harbour and the farm will be closed for short periods in the morning.
But various tourist destinations and accommodation providers, including the Addo Elephant National Park, are fuming as they were not consulted, or even notified, before the process started.
South African National Parks (SanParks) spokeswoman Fayroush Ludick said while they knew about the coming wind farm, they had only found out the components were being transported after they were already on the road on Monday morning.
“We are concerned about business we could possibly be losing. Many guests, especially international visitors, come from Port Elizabeth and will be greatly inconvenienced by the delays on the road. [And] people with other ac- commodation, who might want to visit us just for the day, may decide to turn back due to the delay.”
She said not only their guests but also farmers in the area and other businesses might have to reroute transport vehicles and drive extended detours to reach their destinations. Affected parties in the area were only called together on Tuesday and told road closures of up to 30 minutes could be expected every Monday, Wednesday and Friday between 9am and 11am.
‘
The Woodall Country House and Spa is situated next to the R335, and owner James Miller said they were very concerned about the inconvenience this would cause their guests.
“Many of our guests come from abroad and we are struggling to get hold of them, to notify them about the possible delays. If we had more prior notice we could have contacted them earlier, but now it may be too late.”
The manager of the nearby De Old Drift Guest Farm, Lize Knoetze, agreed that earlier notification would have helped, so that visitors could either prepare themselves for the delays or plan different routes. “Then again, a different route may cut on travel time, but with fuel prices as high as they are now any detours will just cost people unnecessary extra expenses.
“Also, many of our guests work through travel agents, who supply guests with an itinerary and travel routes. If they don’t know the area well and try to take a different route, they may get lost.”
Nelson Mandela Bay mayoral committee member for infrastructure and engineering Andile Mfunda said they were aware of the planned transport arrangements, and confirmed that affected roads could be closed for two hours, three days a week, but could not say for how long this would continue.
Wind farm constructors Innowind, however, said the planned road closures would continue for the next seven weeks.
Project manager Kevin Minkoff said the transportation of all 20 wind turbines would, according to plan, be completed next month.
“We do apologise for any inconvenience caused and ask for those affected to please be patient. If all goes well, roads will not be closed for the full two hours on every transport day. We believe motorists are looking at half-hour delays.”