R1.05bn set aside to fix up rural roads

Public Works MEC Thandiswa Marawu announced yesterday that her department had set aside a budget of R1.05-billion to repair rural roads in the Eastern Cape.

Tabling her policy speech at the legislature yesterday, Marawu said the amount would be increased to R1.12-billion in the 2016-17 financial year.

“Included in these amounts are funds earmarked for the repair of rural roads damaged by the floods experienced in the province over the last three to four years,” she said.

Some of the allocations include:

lR110-million will be used for re-gravelling roads;

lR185-million for routine roads maintenance; and

lR126-million for disaster response projects.

“Work has been going on and significant progress is made in the repair of these roads,” she said.

“We would like to move even quicker in repairing these roads but limited resources prohibit us from doing so. We are, however, addressing this constraint,” Marawu said.

The Daily Dispatch reported last year that R942.3-million was allocated in the 2015-16 financial year to rehabilitation, resealing, regravelling and blacktopping (tarring), and patching of gravel roads.

“I am pleased to report that at the end of the third quarter my department has surpassed the annual target of regravelling 592km and instead resurfaced 748km,” Marawu said.

The department has also set aside an additional R896.5-million for the general upgrade of gravel roads.

Marawu said the upgrade of the R61 from Umtamvuma to Mbizana and Nomlacu, as well as Nkantolo Road, was progressing very well.

She said the next phases of the upgrades would continue on certain provincial and rural roads.

These included:

lT125 to the N2 towards Siphetu Hospital Phase 2 valued at R250.02-million;

lThe resurfacing of the R61 from Bizana to Port Edward (Phase 1 and 2) at a total cost of R930-million. This road will service a hospital, six clinics and 28 schools;

lThe resurfacing of the road from Tombo to Mpamba which leads to Isilimela Hospital (Phase1 and 2) valued at R314-million. The MEC said the construction of three bridges would be completed by the end of next month;

lPhase 1 of resurfacing the road between Willowvale and Dwesa Nature Reserve at a cost of R91-million;

lDR8376 to Sabalele road valued at R170 million; and

lThe upgrading of DR18045 Centane to Qholora Phase 2A – to be completed by November 2016.

The MEC also announced an intergovernmental project involving the national Department of Transport, public works and all six district municipalities for the establishment of an integrated Road Asset Management System (Rams).

This will enable relevant stakeholders, including technical and managerial staff from all spheres of government, to access Rams information daily, to ensure a seamless system to manage all 78770km of provincial and local municipal roads in the Eastern Cape.

“(This information) will assist every local municipal area (LMA) to identify, prioritise and plan municipal roads maintenance and upgrading projects within their municipality and also to comply with the requirements of the Government Immovable Asset Management Act.

“Equally, the integrated Rams will assist my department to plan our provincial maintenance and upgrading projects in a holistic manner for both provincial and municipal roads,” Marawu added.