Govt road rehabilitation continues countrywide 

Source: Govt road rehabilitation continues countrywide | The Herald

Transport and Infrastructural Development Minister Felix Mhona (right) and Zimbabwe National Road Administration board chairman Dr George Manyaya monitor progress during a tour of Seke Road resurfacing near Chinhamo. — Picture: Kudakwashe Hunda.

Freeman Razemba Senior Reporter

THE GOVERNMENT has started the rehabilitation and reconstruction of other roads in Harare, Chitungwiza and Bindura.
This is continuation and sustenance of efforts in undertaking extensive infrastructural development projects through the construction, upgrading and rehabilitation of roads to enhance the transportation of goods and people under the Emergency Road Rehabilitation Programme (ERRP).

Transport and Infrastructural Development Minister Felix Mhona confirmed the development today.

“We have just started rehabilitation of Gudza-Kubvumbi-Batanai-Tumba Way-Waterland Road in Chitungwiza. Road rehabilitation are also in progress on Knightsbridge and Glengarry Roads in Newlands.

Under the Emergency Road Rehabilitation Programme (ERRP) major roads linking suburbs that were potholed are being rehabilitated as Government implements development that leaves no one and no place behind.

“Road construction of Bindura-Matepatepa is also now in progress,” he said.

Another road under construction is in Headlands, which leads to Muchekeranwa Dam, which is the biggest Dam in Mashonaland East where plans to set an irrigation scheme are under way.

The minister confirmed that several other roads countrywide were currently being reconstructed or rehabilitated with some almost complete and that no one will be left behind.

The major road through Ridgeview in Harare, the Ganges Road, has also been undergoing surfacing and reopens soon.

Ganges Road is the old runway for the Belvedere Airport and was reclaimed from the bush as a main road more than half a century ago. It finally needed fixing.

Ganges Road runs through to Ridgeview and passes near Zesa National Training Centre, Harare Institute of Technology and Belvedere Technical Teachers’ College. The road has a length of 2,23km.

Another road, St Patrick’s, the main central east-west road through Hatfield that was in a terrible state, has also been completed and opened to traffic in Harare as the Government presses ahead with modernising the country’s road network.

St Patrick’s Road, which links motorists with Seke Road and Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo Expressway which leads to the Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport, has been completely re-done and now awaits road markings.

In Harare, over 40 roads have so far been rehabilitated over the initial target of 32 roads.
Road construction falls under the infrastructure cluster and roads are regarded as key economic enablers in line with the vision of attaining an upper middle income economy by 2030.

The Government has so far spent over $1 billion on road rehabilitation, gravelling and drainage structuring as part of the Second Republic’s ERRP2 launched by President Mnangagwa early last year.

Minister Mhona, said the quality of work by construction companies involved in the Emergency Road Rehabilitation Programme (ERRP) was satisfactory and the roads can last up to 20 years before requiring extensive rehabilitation.

Roadworks are going on at a pace not experienced before in the country.

The Government took over the rehabilitation and reconstruction of roads in towns and cities after realising that the inept opposition was failing or unable to channel funds towards roads rehabilitation.

City roads were supposed to be under the purview of local authorities, but councils have failed to maintain them.
President Mnangagwa had listened to the requests by citizens for road rehabilitation to be taken over by the Government.

The Government is expected to roll-out another massive road restoration exercise targeting not only highways, but those roads in communities and other feeder roads to ensure no one is left behind in line with President Mnangagwa’s demand.

Government is on a drive to rehabilitate major roads

The Harare-Bindura highway reconstruction under the Emergency Road Rehabilitation Programme Phase 2 has started.

The contractor, Bitumen World expects to take six months to bring the road up to the required standard.

The Government has taken a deliberate approach of modernising infrastructure including transport and electricity infrastructure, which is a key enabler for economic growth and development.

Over 2000km of roads have been regravelled, while 6 627,9km have been graded with 701 drainage structures constructed or repaired and 184 wash-ways reclaimed.

Across the country, 4 491,5km of drains have been opened, while 6 141,2km of verges have been cleared with progress continuing to be made on the patching of potholes with a cumulative of 4 794,8km having been attended to.