Section three of the construction of the dual carriageway from the single-lane road to Dobra between Windhoek and Okahandja has commenced and will be completed in 15 months. The section of the trunk road comprises of approximately 8 km of single-lane road and will be upgraded to a dual carriageway from the existing dual road on the Windhoek-Okahandja route to the bridge at Dobra.
Roads Authority of Namibia Chief Executive Officer Conrad Lutombi said that the road will be constructed at a cost of about N$2.4 million (US$183,285 million) by Grinaker-LTA under the supervision of VKE Namibia. Also, there is a drive to provide passing opportunities for fast-moving vehicles, thereby reducing the possibility of head-on collisions such as has been witnessed in the past.
A major benefit for truckers is the reduced travel time, reduced transportation and vehicle operating and maintenance costs due to reduced wear and tear. Lutombi noted that the latest traffic counts for the month of December showed that the road carried between 1,200 and 6,500 vehicles per day.
Lutombi said the design of the dual carriage way incorporates a number of features such as carefully-located and protected pedestrian bridges and fencing off of certain sections of the highway aimed at reducing pedestrian or vehicle conflicts which have in the past resulted in fatal collisions at specific locations on the road.
