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Ivan Zhakata and Freeman Razemba
THE Mbudzi interchange is now 43 percent complete as the construction of a 36km dual carriageway along the Harare-Masvingo-Beitbridge highway from Chartergrade to Harare’s city centre, is now at an advanced stage with 15km of dualised road now already open to traffic.
This is part of the Harare-Masvingo-Beitbridge highway reconstruction in which about 450km of rebuilt and upgraded highway, including stretches of dual carriageway at critical choke points, is already open to traffic leaving just 110km still being worked on.
Construction works at the Mbudzi interchange are progressing well with infrastructure set to be completed in the first quarter of next year.
Transport and Infrastructural Development Minister Felix Mhona yesterday led a delegation on a tour of the highway, while secretary for Presidential Affairs and Monitoring Implementation of Government Programmes Mrs Fananai Madambi toured the construction site of the Mbudzi interchange.
She was accompanied by Secretary for Transport and Infrastructural Development Mr Theodus Chinyanga and Secretary for Provincial Affairs and Devolution for Harare Metropolitan Province Mr Tafadzwa Muguti.
Speaking during the tour, Mr Chinyanga said they were happy with the progress and the interchange is expected to be complete by the first quarter of next year.
“The progress made so far is 43 percent and the plan is 47 percent and of course, there is that difference in progress that we should have achieved to date,” he said.
“Most of it is attributed to the slow movement of progress on compensating those whose properties we have impacted on but we are doing the best we can and the contractor has enough space to work on. We believe that once we are done with these compensations, we will do a catch-up programme and we will be back on track.
“However, our financial progress, as opposed to physical, is at 28 percent. The basic reason being our payment or drop down on the loan is based on milestones. The drop-down is based on the completion of an item of the project.”
Ms Madambi said the interchange was a massive project. It is a set of bridges to allow traffic on three interconnecting highways to flow continuously in both directions and to make left and right turns without pause and without obstructing other traffic.
The interchange has to allow the traffic on the national Harare-Masvingo highway to flow freely, while also allowing the traffic to Chitungwiza and major Harare business and residential areas to move freely.
“From a monitoring point of view we are impressed because this is one of the massive projects, a strategic project whereby the Second Republic wants to modernise infrastructure such as roads, bridges and this interchange is going to be a free-flowing interchange,” she said.
“We are looking at this project as one of those projects which is responding to the call of the people where the Government is coming in to address the real problems that people were experiencing. We expect that this project, once completed is going to reduce traffic congestion and also make people because at the end of the day we will not have traffic jams.” Mr Muguti said the project will benefit all Zimbabweans and they were hoping that such projects would happen across the country’s 10 provinces.
“We would like to thank His Excellency, President Mnangagwa for the great work which is happening here at Mbudzi interchange,” he said.
“This is one of the biggest projects happening right now within the SADC region and we have about 615 people from around the community who benefited from the work here. This includes engineers and all other staff who are working on this project.”
As part of the construction of the Harare-Masvingo-Beitbridge Highway, the Government is dualising the road as it approaches towns or busy areas, and already, from Beitbridge about 5km have been dualised to where the roads to Masvingo and Bulawayo split, while between Ngundu Business Centre and Runde River, 16km would be dualised.
Getting into Masvingo, 20km were dualised, and the Government is targeting 36km as the highway heads into Harare.
Once the entire road has been done from Beitbridge to Harare, attention will shift to the 342km Harare-Chirundu section of the main north-south corridor.
Five companies are already on site and expectations are that the highway would be completed within 18 to 24 months.
Motorists interviewed yesterday hailed President Mnangagwa and the Government over the construction of the 36km dual carriageway along the Harare-Masvingo-Beitbridge Highway from Chartergrade area to Harare’s city centre saying the development would see a reduction in road traffic accidents and ease congestion.
Mr Godwin Gwimbi said: “It is my hope that motorists will avoid accidents and I would like to thank the Government, under the leadership of President Mnangagwa, for rehabilitating this road.”
Another motorist, Mr Stewart Chikuni who is a mine engineer said: “Even after 20 years or 100 years, we will always remember what Government has done. The road is now smooth and accidents will only be caused by human errors.”
A truck driver Mr Godknows Mureverwi said the Second Republic was walking the talk in terms of leaving no one and no place behind.
“We have been using this road for several years and it had been in a bad shape. But however, the Second Republic has made sure that it is rehabilitated since it is a very busy highway.
Minister Mhona however, took time to interact with and advise motorists on new developments along the highway.
He also warned motorists especially bus drivers against speeding.
“Let me thank His Excellency Cde Dr Emmerson Mnangagwa, the visionary leader, and if you remember very well, two, three, four years ago this road was in a sorry state but walking the talk and we are where we are today.
“We promised the people of Zimbabwe that we were going to rehabilitate this road to date we have opened up 450km of this stretch, starting from Beitbridge to Harare.
“Now we are gravitating towards Chirundu but precisely if we talk of Harare we are only left with 110km to connect,” he said.
Once the entire road has been done from Beitbridge to Harare, attention will shift to the 342km Harare-Chirundu section of the main north-south corridor.
Five companies are already on site and expectations are that the highway will be completed soon.
Online Reporter