Roads Infrastructure in the Fast Lane

Cutting the ceremonial ribbon to officially open the completed portion of the N1 are (from the left): HoD Thami Manyathi, MEC Marius Fransman, Head of Roads Infrastructure Jakkie van Heerden, and Elizabeth Thomson, Mayoral Committee Member for Public Transport, Roads and Storm Water at the City of Cape Town.

More than a R100 million was invested by the Department of Transport and Public Works in the rehabilitation of a section of the N1 (between Koeberg and Old Oak) interchanges that were officially opened by Minister Marius Fransman recently. A further R36 million was invested in the rehabilitation of Jan van Riebeeck Road in Paarl.

Special efforts were made by the contractors to create new jobs and train young road workers to be skilled in road safety, road works and environmental issues. According to Minister Fransman, the newly completed section of the N1 is one of the busiest roads in South Africa. He said that a good road infrastructure is critical in our country to pave the way for economical growth. "The Western Cape is taking the lead by allocating more than 57% of the total departmental budget of R2,1 billion to the Roads Infrastructure Branch". Apart from honouring the experience and quality workmanship of the consultants and contractors, he called for women involved in construction to come forward. "We want to see more ladies getting involved in roads infrastructure," he said.

Jakkie van Heerden, Head of Roads Infrastructure, thanked the Minister for his support and also thanked his team for the effectiveness with which both roads were rehabilitated. More than 100 permanent jobs were created and 220 temporary positions were filled during the construction phases of both projects.

Enquiries:
Chris Prins
Manager: Communication
Department of Transport and Public Works
Tel: 021 483 2132
Email: cwprins@pgwc.gov.za