Residents demand upgrade of road between Vyeboom and Davhana Cross

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08-09-2025
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Zoutnet
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Residents from five Vuwani villages say they are fed up with waiting for the government to upgrade the gravel road between Vyeboom and Davhana Cross. Communities from Nngwekhulu, Tshilata, Sundani, Mabidi and Davhana say the road is in poor condition and becomes nearly unusable during the rainy season.

In 2022, the Limpopo Department of Public Works awarded a R19.2-million contract to MVE Consulting to design an upgrade for Road D3746. But residents say no progress has been made since.

“Even former President Jacob Zuma promised us a tar road in 2009, when he handed over RDP houses, but nothing has changed,” says 75-year-old Elisa Mufamadi. “Our villages are still covered in dust.” Residents say government grading efforts do not last, forcing them to fill potholes with soil and stones from their yards.

Taxi drivers avoid the road, leaving residents to walk or ask for lifts from passing traffic. Heavy vehicles and sand trucks using the road worsen conditions, forcing learners to dodge traffic and walk through dust. Ambulances can take more than two hours to reach Tshilidzini or Elim hospital - a trip that would normally take about 40 minutes.

Taxi driver Shonisani Raphalalani says the road makes running a service impossible. “We spend more money fixing suspensions and tyres than we earn from passengers,” he says.

On 29 August, about 40 residents marched to the Limpopo Department of Public Works in Polokwane to hand over a memorandum urging the Road Agency Limpopo (RAL) to prioritise D3746 and respond within 15 working days.

Limpopo Public Works spokesperson Emmanuel Mongwe said funding had only covered design work so far. Applications for infrastructure funding will be reviewed and resubmitted. He noted the road is included in RAL’s 2025/26 budget submissions and said completed designs improve its chances of being prioritised.

“Projects are ranked based on traffic, links to schools and clinics, readiness of designs and backlogs. Limited funding and competing needs have delayed D3746,” Mongwe said