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 Aziz Hartley, Cape Times
28 July 2010

Thousands of motorists can breathe easy following the shifting of two toll plazas some distance from densely populated areas in the metro.

The SA National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) had initially planned plazas on the N2 close to Khayelitsha and the N1 near Brackenfell with low and high toll fees of R10 and R14 in both areas. An agency spokesman has said the N1 plaza is to be moved north of the Engen Winelands garage in the Joostenberg area, while on the N2 the plaza would be close to the R310 near Eerste River.

Transport and Public Works MEC Robin Carlisle, said he had been vehemently opposed to the toll roads, particularly those that affected disadvantaged communities such as Mitchells Plain, Khayelitsha, Delft, Wallacedene and Kraaifontein. Sanral had agreed not to have these plazas where initially planned and would offer "big" tariff discounts at plazas planned elsewhere in the metro, Carlisle said. "I've opposed the toll roads very vigorously for some years. My primary concern has been that toll roads travel through two areas of very dense and poor populations. That has been my most serious objection. I'm happy to say Sanral looked at this and have shifted the toll plazas so that tolling will commence almost exclusively outside of those areas I've been concerned about," Carlisle said.

He said Sanral also agreed to ensure toll roads did not have a negative impact on local economies in non-metro areas and that, in places such as Grabouw and Elgin, road users would be able to enter and exit the N2 without passing through toll plazas. "They (Sanral) have put the toll plazas at fair distances from each other. They've tried their best not to interfere with those local economies. They have undertaken to try and ensure very big discounts for people who use the plazas," Carlisle said.

Sanral would also take over the management of weighbridges on the N1 and N2, he said. Carlisle said the provincial government would now reconsider its opposition to the toll roads. "But we have to take that decision together with the other affected parties - municipalities through whose areas the toll roads run. Cabinet will be considering the toll roads in about a month's time. I can't anticipate what the decision will be, but I'd say we made considerable progress in achieving a more acceptable situation," he said.

Sanral regional manager Kobus Van der Walt confirmed that road users from areas such as Khayelitsha along the N2 and Kraaifontein along the N1 would no longer be affected. Other N1 plazas still in the pipeline are at Huguenot Tunnel and De Doorns on the N1. On the N2, plazas will be situated at the bottom of Sir Lowry's Pass near Strand and at Bot River. Tariffs are expected to be R16 (low) and R23 (high). Van der Walt said toll discounts would vary from 20 percent for frequent users (20-39 trips a month) to 70 percent for local users. Depending on the roads they used, local public transport operators would get discounts of up to 50 percent.

He also confirmed that Sanral would manage weighbridges, but said law enforcement officers would still be needed to deal with offenders. "It has always been our policy to work with the province and the city. We want a good relationship with municipalities and to assist them where we can. Road users are our customers and we do what we can to protect them," Van der Walt said in response to Carlisle's comment that progress had been made. He said it would take about eight months to appoint an operator after the September 20 deadline for tenders invited. "Roads will have to be designed before the plazas are set up."

Minibus taxi groups said Sanral's decision to shift plazas away from the Khayelitsha and Kraaifontein areas was good news for the industry and its thousands of commuters. "We and other motorists use those roads. For us, the money we were going to pay would probably have come from commuters. "I want to salute the provincial government for having fought very hard," Western Cape Provincial Taxi Alliance spokesperson Mvuyisi Mente said. Golden Arrow spokesperson John Dammert, who also welcomed the news, said bus company operated 4 671 trips a week on the routes. A toll of R52 per trip per bus would have cost the company an extra R13 681 876 a year.

The company would have been unable to absorb such a cost and would probably have passed it on to commuters, he said. SA National Taxi Council provincial chairperson Vernon Billet said: "We are very happy. It (toll plazas) would have contributed to our operation costs." Mayco member for transport Theresa Thompson said the change of plan was good news as the council was opposed to toll plazas in the metro, particularly in areas near disadvantaged communities.

 Karishma Thakurdin
23rd July 2010, Engineering News

Civil engineering and construction group Basil Read CEO Marius Heyns tells Engineering News that the construction giant has played a key role in developing Gauteng’s freeways through the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP), which has contributed to growing South Africa’s economy through job creation and social spin-offs.

Basil Read was awarded the contract for phase one of the GFIP by the South African National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral), in conjunction with its joint venture partners, Roadcrete Africa and Dip Civils, and Heyns indicates that the projects are on track and some have reached completion ahead of time. He says that the company has a variety of road projects in the pipeline and has submitted tenders worth millions of rands.

“Sanral has indicated the continuation of the N12 freeway extension, which is worth about R800-million, and we are still busy with work on the toll road between the N1 and N2 in Cape Town, which is worth about R5-billion,” he adds. Sanral GFIP project leader Alex van Niekerk previously told Engineering News that 80% of the first phase of road upgrades had been completed, with 20 of the 34 interchange upgrades completed.

This comprises an 80% completion of the road-widening works, the construction of concrete median barriers and the lighting of the roads. Heyns says: “A minimum of one lane has been added to all carriageways and specific upgrades on interchanges were done to reduce bottlenecks at interchanges identified through research carried out before the roll-out of the projects. “The project also aims to stimulate future economic growth in the region and create jobs and ensure empowerment and skills transfer for the local labour targeted,” he adds. “A related spin-off will be the potential of foreign investment in the region following the 2010 FIFA World Cup, which showcased the region and its newly upgraded infrastructure.

Heyns explains that 95% of all the materials used has been sourced locally – with the exception of steel fibre, which is not locally available and was imported. He says that many new technologies were adopted in the road upgrades and certain methods would be a world first. Noise tests highlighted the need for the construction of noise barriers, which have been used on certain roads of the GFIP project.

For example, brick walls have been built on the N1 section from the Atterbury interchange to the N4 interchange and are up to 12 m high and aim to reduce noise for neighbouring properties. For the N12 highway, Basil Read is proposing the use of European systems that comprise either noise-absorbing wood-chipped concrete panelling or recycled foam plastic. These systems have been successfully implemented in England, Germany and Belgium. Temporary barrier systems were adopted throughout the GFIP projects and conform to European impact standards to ensure that both the road user and the construction worker are protected during the upgrades. The noise-reducing asphalt overlay has been employed by Sanral on all sections – this is an ultrathin friction course, which is an 18-mm coarsely graded surfacing that reduces road noise as well as limits ‘spray-up’ from vehicles during rainy conditions. Heyns explains that some of the benefits of implementing new technology are long-term durability and reduced maintenance, which mean fewer disruptions for road users.

Meanwhile, more than 3 500 people have been employed on the company’s four major GFIP road projects, over a period of two years. Heyns says that these projects have contributed significantly to skills development.“Developing skills in local labour is critical to developing the country’s future economy, as, when the projects are complete, labourers can use their skills for future work opportunities,” he adds. A requirement for the GFIP projects is that a minimum of 12% of the contract value be allocated to small, medium-sized and microenterprise (SMME) companies. This means that, of the R 3,7-billion to be spent on Basil Read’s package, a minimum of R440-million will be earmarked for SMMEs.

Irma Venter
Creamer Media
23 July 2010

The South African National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) expects to announce the winning bidder for the N1/N2 Winelands toll project, in the Western Cape, in April next year, says Sanral Western Cape regional manager Kobus van der Walt.

Tenders for the project close in September. The project stretches around 105 km from the R300 to Sandhills on the N1, and 70 km on the N2 from the Swartklip interchange to the Bot river.

“The road already exists, so this is a contract for a concessionaire to take over the road, upgrade it, and then operate it as a toll road.” Work on the project includes the construction of additional ?lanes, 13 km of new road at Somerset West, and the upgrading of the interchanges.

Also, the Huguenot tunnel will receive a second bore. This will allow for two lanes of traffic in each direction, with each tunnel carrying traffic in one direction only.

Loni Prinsloo
Engineering News
12th July 2010

The South African National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) said on Monday that construction on the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP) would restart this week, after it was suspended for the duration of the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Sanral said that even though the GFIP was not a World Cup project, certain milestones were set to allow for freer flowing traffic and roads were made available during the event to increase the capacity of the network.

However, the agency noted that in certain areas work, such as adding the final top layer of the road, carrying out quality tests and applying final road markings, still needed to be completed. "Thus, certain lanes that were made available during the World Cup might need to be closed again to allow for the construction works to be finalised."

It was anticipated that the bulk of the construction works on the first phase of the GFIP would be completed by the end of the year. The 185 km first-phase includes the widening of freeways through the addition of new lanes, while also upgrading interchanges.

Sanral will implement a tolling system on the new and improved freeways, which will start in April.

Reuters, 8/7/2010

South Africa's roads agency raised 543 million rand in a bond auction to help raise funds for the expansion and upgrade of toll roads, joint lead arrangers Absa Capital and Rand Merchant Bank said on Wednesday.

The auction of the government-guaranteed bonds means the agency has now raised 18.2 billion rand worth of bonds for the programme.

Construction on the roads will resume on July 12 and is expected to be completed in October.