Major revamp of East Cape roads

[caption id="attachment_139635" align="aligncenter" width="500"] CRUMBLING ROAD: The R335 to Addo is due to undergo an upgrade. Picture: EUGENE COETZEE[/caption]

Sanral to spend billions on upgrading network in eastern part of province

BRACE yourself for massive roadworks throughout the Eastern Cape after the government announced yesterday it would spend billions of rands to build or revamp the province’s road network for the next five years.

While some major roads in the western part of the province are set to be revamped, the majority of the work will be done on the eastern side, where most of the infrastructure backlogs are.

Delivering her policy speech in Bhisho yesterday, Roads and Public Works MEC Thandiswa Marawu said the investment would make roads in that part of the province the best in the country.

Over the next two financial years, plans are afoot to upgrade the section of the R72 between Port Alfred and Peddie as well as the R335, also known as the Addo Road.

The R334, which is the “shortcut” road linking the N2 near Colchester to Uitenhage that has been closed off for years, will also undergo construction, but only in the 2017-18 financial year.

The tender for the reconstruction of the Sandriver Bridge at Cape St Francis has been awarded to start this year, but the contract is still under a legal challenge.

Marawu said there had been an unprecedented roll-out of road infrastructure projects in the last financial year and this year would be the same.