Chronicle Editor
WORK to repair and rehabilitate some sections of the Bulawayo-Victoria Falls Highway has started. Delegates to the just-ended Infrastructure Summit and Expo organised by the National Economic Consultative Forum (NECF) in Victoria Falls, said driving through the Highway was now dangerous because of deplorable state of the road.
They said driving along the busy highway was now a nightmare for motorists because of potholes. The road links Zimbabwe with South Africa, Zambia, Botswana and Namibia.
The complaints from the delegates prompted the Zimbabwe National Road Administration (Zinara) chief executive Mr Nkosinathi Ncube to apologise for the state of the highway.
Mr Ncube said work to rehabilitate the worst affected sections of the highway had started.
President Mnangagwa has since directed that resources be mobilised to repair and rehabilitate the worst affected sections of the road and teams are already on the ground.
Road construction giant Bitumen World (Private Limited) has been contracted to undertake the work and has deployed three teams along the highway.
The rehabilitation of the Harare-Beitbridge Highway is nearing completion as 435km is now open to traffic and the rehabilitation of the Bulawayo-Victoria Falls is among the projects that the Government intends to implement soon.
Government should be commended for its swift response to the motorists’ complaints on the state of the busy Bulawayo-Victoria Falls Highway by repairing the worst affected sections. The repairs are meant to ensure the Highway remains navigable before Government undertakes the rehabilitation of the whole stretch of the highway like what is being done along the Harare-Beitbridge Highway.
A good road network is critical for economic development hence Government is prioritising the rehabilitation of major highways. There is also an urgent need to rehabilitate the National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) railway network so that bulk cargo is transported by railway as opposed to using haulage trucks which are damaging roads.
The lifespan of the country’s road network will be extended once all the bulk cargo is transported by railways leaving very few haulage trucks on our roads.
It is a fact that Government is overwhelmed by roads that need to be rehabilitated hence the need for the private sector to complement its efforts.
Zwane Enterprises has taken the lead by constructing the 120km Old Gwanda Road at a cost of US$150 million. The project is being implemented on Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) arrangement.
We are appealing to other companies to come on board and join Government in order to speed up the road rehabilitation programme.
Online Reporter