The Department of Transport and Public Works has made commendable progress in the rehabilitation of major road in South Africa -Suider Agter Paarl Road between Old Paarl Road (the R101) and the R44.
This US$4.2million project was started in June of 2015 and is expected to be completed in August 2016.
The project entails adding surface shoulders on to the sides of the road, the building of a pedestrian walkway on the southern side, and the rehabilitation the of existing drainage channels and structures.
The project also has tremendous benefits for the local community. The contractor has agreed to the proposal to build a new sports ground at Bergendal Primary School in exchange for being allowed to store construction machines and material on the private land of a farmer. The construction of the sports field has commenced and is scheduled to be complete in July 2016.
A one-way traffic movement will be possible during the period of construction, with traffic signals at night and stop/ go operations during the day.
The project is already creating job opportunities for many people and has already exceeded its employment and empowerment targets by a long way. Expenditure on the contract on targeting enterprises is so far US$688000, which is US$473000 in excess of the targeted amount at this stage. In  total ,13 590 person-days of work have been created up to now for people from the Cape Winelands District, and this is more than double the 6 000 person-day  that was previously target.
The 6Â km Suider Agter Paarl Road was last rehabilitated in 1980. Over 720 motorists who use this road on daily basis will soon start enjoying a better travelling experience on one of the most popular Cape Winelands tourism routes.
