29 June 2023
KAZUNGULA: Minister of Transport and Public Works, Eric Molale has revealed that government plans to build toll gates, a railway line and alternative roads to ease congestion along the A3 road.
The A3 road has proven to be one of the busiest and deadliest roads in the country following the opening of Kazungula Bridge. Since the commissioning of the Bridge, road traffic on A3 has doubled as the facility is frequently used by inter-regional trucks within Southern Africa. The A3 road has also claimed countless lives.
Molale announced news of the planned toll gates when he was officiating the groundbreaking session for the Botswana Housing Corporation (BHC) construction project. The Minister said the installation of toll gates would ensure the levy accrued would be put towards servicing roads.
According to Molale, to ease traffic, the alternative roads identified for toll gates along the A3 are Oliphant’s Drift, Ntlhantlhe, Takatokwane, Goodhope and Ntlhantlhe. But he did not state when the government plans to get the project off the ground. Furthermore, Molale also indicated that this ministry has injected over P11 billion into a development management model for roads and infrastructure. He added that the money had been divided into nine packages, the first of which, worth P1.2 billion, would be allocated to the Chobe region. He stated that a portion of the funds disbursed would be used as part of the transitional plan to rebuild a section of the A3 road close to Ngwasha and Pandamatenga.
“The government also intends to construct a rail sail in Sowa Town to reduce traffic on A3 road. Truck drivers will deliver their cargo for rail sailing and have it transported via train to Livingstone in Zambia,” he added.
On other matters, Molale raised complained about local contractors who have the tendency to not complete road and infrastructure projects. He further said currently, about nine incomplete roads amounting to P3 billion are at a standstill due to pending court cases.
“Some of the roads were awarded from as far back as 2016, 2017 and 2018 after the destructions caused by Cyclone Dineo. The concerning part is that all of these roads were awarded to local contractors,” he added.
Source: https://www.mmegi.bw/news/govt-plans-toll-gates-for-a3-road/news
