Two King William’s Town communities on either side of the Yellowwoods River are soon to be linked after a five-year wait.
The pedestrian bridge will connect Qalashe village, on the northern bank, to KwaTshatshu village on the other side.
BCM ward councillor in the area Leon Mentoor said when he came into office in 2011 the construction of the bridge was listed on the Integrated Development Plan (IDP) for the ward.
“I took the request to council and it was given priority. However, the project was delayed by land ownership issues but that is now resolved and the project has been approved,” said Mentoor.
He said there was no formal crossing connecting the two communities.
“When there are heavy rains the residents from Qalashe are cut off from access to crucial services such as schools, clinics and employment opportunities in KwaTshatshu,” said Mentoor.
Residents from both communities said the bridge would ensure their safety and shorten the distance they had to walk.
Qalashe community leader Elvis Frans said the distance between the two villages was less than a kilometre but longer and very costly when using two alternative routes.
“There is no school, clinic or taxi rank in Qalashe. The nearest community we can access these services is KwaTshatshu. This bridge will bring much relief to the people of the community,” said Frans.
Lindeka Mafa, who lives in KwaTshatshu, said she was glad the bridge was finally going to be constructed as she was concerned about the safety of pupils from Qalashe who had to cross the river to get to school in KwaTshatshu.
Mentoor was unable to say when construction would start other than it would be “soon”.
BCM spokesman Keith Ngesi said the metro was finalising land acquisition, and procurement processes would be concluded by next month.
“At this stage we cannot share much on the project until these processes are complete,” he said earlier this week.