R3.5 billion stimulus programme for South African transport

South Africa's minister of Transport, Blade Nzimande, has announced a stimulus package of R3.5 billion which will prioritise economic building activities for youth, women and small businesses.

Announced during a SANRAL briefing, Nzimande said the stimulus package would unlock R13.1 billion in investment in critical and strategic road infrastructure.

Other projects covered in the briefing included:

N2 Wild Coast Road projects

The minister announced that there are three projects in which SANRAL can move to construction phase. These include:

A R976 million, 16.3km new single carriageway and four lane road from Lingeni to the Msikaba Bridge. It is believed the project will create 450+ jobs.

A R1.1 billion, 17.7km single carriageway road is also being built between the Msikaba and Mtentu Bridges. The project encompasses the construction of a bridge and two interchanges. It is anticipated that 550 jobs will be created from this project,

There is also a R853-million, 11.5km road, two bridges and two interchanges from Kulumbe to the Umtamvuna River.

“On all these projects – with a combined envisaged value of almost R3-billion, we will spend more than R930-million on small and medium enterprises and emerging contractors, many of them women and the youth,” Nzimande said.

Projects in the planning

In the province of KwaZulu-Natal, SANRAL are planning upgrades to the N3 highway between Durban and Pietermaritzburg. The plans are at an advanced stage and it is hoped that construction will commence in mid-2020.

The first phase of the project is estimated at R13-billion.