One of SA’s busiest highways is going to be revamped

by womenonwheels

February 17, 2021

One of SA's busiest highways is going to be revamped

The South African National Highway Office has confirmed that it will soon begin to work on the long-postponed upgrade to National Highway 3 (N3).

According to Eminetra, the upgrade forms part of a R3 billion upgrade for both the N2 and N3 highways in and around Durban and Kwazulu-Natal.

Sanral says the first upgrade is going to be the N3 between Dardanelles Straits interchange and the Linfield Park interchange between Katridge and Pietermaritzburg.

“During the next 42 months of construction, the existing 4-lane dual-lane road will be upgraded to an 8-lane dual-lane interchange by extending it to the median strip and outer shoulders. The existing Dardanels Strait Interchange. Will also be upgraded to improve traffic flow. “

“This construction will invest R1.48 billion in this section of the highway, creating an estimated 700 job opportunities.”

This is part of the government strategy to give the economy a kickstart.

The first bit of road works will affect traffic on the R103 from the north of Camper Down interchange to the south of the Linfield Park interchange.

“STOP / GO transportation accommodation along this section of R103 will be installed to repair the surface of R103 and lower R103 across under N3 north of the Dardanelles Strait,” said a project engineer at Sanral Eastern Region, Corné Roux.

The “Stop & Go” control is expected to be effective from February 12, 2021, to May 15, 2021.

The N3’s main upgrade will begin with an expansion of the southbound highway and will begin in May 2021.

Another part of the N3 highway project is the Westville Viaduct / Paradise Valley which will feature the first network arch bridge built in South Africa.

Sanral proposed the bridge aiming to expand the entire N3, creating space for more lanes and is costing them an estimated R300 million.

“The N3 upgrade project will improve the capacity of the N3 from the Westville Viaduct to the Paradise Valley interchange in KwaZulu-Natal,” said Transport Minister Fikirem Barra.

“The total length of the construction is as large as 1,666 km, including an innovative arch bridge that spans the N3.”

President Cyril Ramaphosa said in one of his key points from the State of The Nation Address, infrastructure projects will form an important part of the government’s Covid-19 recovery program.

Picture: Twitter/@Minister of Transport

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