Highway upgrade given go-ahead

the province has given the green light for the long-awaited doubling of the john ross highway between empangeni and richards bay, but there is no clear indication of when construction will start.

the department of agriculture and environmental affairs has issued a record of decision, in terms of the environmental conservation act, for the multimillion-rand project to begin within 12 months.

the decision gives environmental approval to the kzn department of transport to upgrade the heavily congested road by building an additional carriageway along a 13.5km stretch between the two towns. improvements will also be made to the the existing two-lane road.

the phased construction will include a 1.2km bridge over the nseleni flood plain and the nseleni river, as well as the widening of two railway bridges.


the project aims to improve access to richards bay and its port and industries, boosting opportunities for economic growth in the region.

the department of agriculture and environmental affairs said the existing john ross highway, the scene of some of kzn's worst road accidents in recent years, carried so much traffic that its capacity had been exceeded. this had resulted in a significant deterioration of the road structure and surface.

the department's decision was noted at a meeting of the umhlathuze council executive yesterday.

mayor denny moffatt said he was pleased the project was going ahead and proceeding in "a fairly orderly fashion