Trans African Concessions (Trac) has announced that the much-anticipated Montrose interchange project that was formally launched at the beginning of this year has commenced and is set to be completed in 2023.
The project will be implemented in phases, the first of which involves blasting to realign 600 meters of the existing Schoemanskloof highway. It will also involve the construction of four new interchange ramps and the expansion of the current two-lane crocodile bridge to five lanes.
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Furthermore, two new arch bridges will be built to cross the current Elands Valley portion and accommodate two additional ramps. To highlight the new interchange, new high-mast lighting will be erected.
Managed by a Wilson Bayly Holmes-Ovcon (WBHO)/Motheo joint venture the Montrose interchange project, the cost of which is slightly over us$ 16.5M is set to take approximately 15 months to completion, with a preliminary completion date of June next year. Trac thinks that the Montrose intersection will produce a free-flow, split-level junction that will considerably enhance traffic flow, comparable to the two interchanges already built on the route – Machado, and Karino.
Other road projects to be carried out along with the Montrose interchange
This month will also see the section 5A repair works between Wonderfontein and Belfast. The close to US$ 16.3M roadworks, managed by Actophambili Roads, will comprise the restoration and enhancement of the existing road, which is expected to be finished by December 2023. With the commencement of these projects, another – the improvement between Kaapmuiden and Kaalrug in the Nkomazi area – comes to a close. This 15.5-kilometer stretch of the Maputo Corridor currently has four lanes of traffic and a restored road surface.
According to the concessionaire, significant progress has also been achieved on Trac’s other large construction projects currently on the South African side of the N4 Route. The Highveld interchange renovation project between OR Tambo and Van Dyksdrift interchanges is 85% complete, with completion due in March. Raubex Construction is building the slightly over US$ 25M project, which includes removing and replacing concrete slabs from the existing concrete covered road, paving the whole length with asphalt, and adding seven kilometers of passing lanes.
Trac reports that the massive improvement between Belfast and Machadodorp is developing smoothly and is 90% complete. WBHO’s close to 26.64M project includes creating one extra lane in each direction and converting this portion to a four-lane road. This project included the construction of a new interchange at Machadodorp, which opened in September. Road crews have begun work on a new component of this project, Milly’s underpass, which, together with the remaining roadwork, is expected to be completed in June of this year.
The Karino interchange project in Mbombela is worth US$ 26M and is 88% complete. Raubex Construction is responsible for converting the current intersection into a grade-separated interchange with on- and off-ramps. The project also includes a bridge that will divide cross-traffic from through-traffic, which will help to reduce congestion at the congested crossroads. Trac reports that the project is moving smoothly despite unanticipated delays, with completion scheduled for March.
