adminsealing and levelling of depressions is already underway in Plumtree.
State-of-the-art equipment that includes a recycler and chip spreaders are already in the country for the commencement of the project.
The recycler is the first of its kind in Zimbabwe and has the capacity to rip off the old tarmac and reconstruct it on the same day and motorists can use the new road the following day.
Part of the equipment, which is worth more than US$2 million, was acquired from Germany by Group Five of South Africa that is partnering the Zimbabwe National Roads Administration in the project.
Speaking during a tour of the project in Plumtree on Tuesday, Zinara southern regional engineer Moses Juma said the road will be widened from the current seven metres to 10 metres.
He said the new road will be resurfaced to become the first modern highway in the country to conform to the Sadc protocols.
“We want to modernise this road and we have already secured a loan of US$2,6 million to fund this project,” he said.
“The road will have nine brand new modern toll plazas. Currently, we have eight tollgates along this road and we want to add another one.
“The first toll plaza, which will be between Plumtree and Shangani, will be operational by September this year.” Eng Juma said they had already done several tests to determine the condition of the existing road.
Among the tests, Eng Juma said, was the dynamic cone penetration, which is used to determine the residual strength of the road underneath.
He said it was important to identify areas where the road had failed underneath to determine the appropriate form of rehabilitation required on a particular stretch. Eng Juma said about 90km of the road will require total reconstruction while 140km needed to be widened.
He said the other 590km needs to be resurfaced.
When complete, Eng Juma said the lifespan of the road will be extended by 10 years and with good maintenance the road might last up to 20 years.
He said the country inherited a dead road network at independence and what had sustained it was good maintenance by the road authorities.
“Most of our roads were constructed in the 1960s and they have outlived their lifespan. With the current situation, it is difficult to construct new roads,” he said.
Eng Juma said it costs about US$1 million to construct only two kilometres of a new road.
He said tollgate collections were not enough to construct new roads as they average US$1,2 million a month.
Eng Juma said work on the Plumtree-Mutare Highway will resume soon after Easter holidays.
“There will be more activity soon after the Easter weekend and this is a big project that we want to see completed within the set timelines,” he said.
Online Reporter