$800 million boost as BCC resumes suspended road works

Bulawayo City Council is resuming road rehabilitation works which were suspended at the beginning of the year, after Government allocated the city nearly $800 million towards road maintenance.

Government is funding most of the major rehabilitation projects through the Emergency Road Rehabilitation Programme (ERRP) 2 which President Mnangagwa launched last year.

In January, the local authority suspended major road rehabilitation projects due to persistent rainfall.

But in the past month, the country has not received significant rains hence the local authority has resolved to start gradual rehabilitation of the city's road infrastructure.

About 75 percent of the city's roads have outlived their lifespan and need to be rehabilitated and the local authority requires about US$700 million to fix the 2 400km road network.

It has become a nightmare driving on most of the city's roads due to the poor road network.

BCC corporate communications officer Ms Bongiwe Ngwenya said the council expects to scale up road rehabilitation programmes next month.

"There are some works that are ongoing from last year and some will resume next week. But for the 2022 programme we should be tendering out in the next week or two and we hope to start in earnest in mid to towards the end of April 2022. Those involved in works are those whose contracts were overlapping into 2022," said Ms Ngwenya.

She said council is still waiting for relevant departments to disburse the finances to  enable them to conduct road rehabilitation works.

Bulawayo town clerk Mr Christopher Dube in a notice yesterday outlined the city's plan as far as the road rehabilitation programme is concerned.

Mr Dube said the local authority has identified roads that will be rehabilitated this year and most of them are major roads.

"The city of Bulawayo Annual Roads Implementation programme for 2022 will focus on the preservation of roads in a fair condition, prioritise the Central Business District and public transport roads. The works will be conducted through in-house teams and private contractors as and when the need arises.

"The intervention seeks to improve storm water drainage, conduct premix overlay works, and reseal works as well as conduct reconstruction. The road rehabilitation works for the year 2022 are expected to be funded under the following programmes: (ERRP2); devolution and borrowing powers," said Mr Dube.

He said the city has been allocated $338 million under ERRP2 programme while $442 million has been budgeted under the devolution fund for road maintenance.

"Bulawayo intends on using 70 percent of the allocation on periodic maintenance, that is reconstruction, overlays and reseals and the remaining 30 percent on routine maintenance (pothole patching, crack sealing and slurry sealing)" said Mr Dube.

He said the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure Development has taken over 10 critical roads that it will be rehabilitating.

Mr Dube said the ministry will rehabilitate Ndaba Road connecting Nketa and Nkulumane, Nkulumane Drive along Bullet, Catherine Berry Drive from Esigodini Road to Philips Drive, Glenville Drive from Falls Road to Princess Road and Lobengula Street from 2nd Avenue to 14th Avenue.

He said the ministry will also rehabilitate Waverly Road near Renkini covering Walsall/ Woodbury/ Wingrove Roads, Chinamano Road from 14th Avenue to Halifax Road and Netherby from Harare Road to Airport Road.

Other roads include Cowdray Park Hlalani Kuhle, Nkulumane Drive between Amagogo Road and Clinic, St Albans/Balley Road, Dundee/Lancaster Road.

He said through the borrowing powers, the local authority wants to raise US$10 million to improve the road network.

Roads such as Siyephambili Drive, George Avenue and 23rd Avenue have become a marvel to drive on following the rehabilitation works that were done last year.

Mr Dube said the city last year received $201 million from the $625 million that was allocated to council by Government for road works.

He said some of the roads that were rehabilitated last year include George Avenue and 23rd Avenue which were resealed, Coghlan Ave, Khami Road, Lobengula Street, Doncaster, Fife Street and 8th Avenue where overlays were done.

Mr Dube said the local authority also made road markings on Cecil Ave, Fort Street, Hillside Road, George Avenue, Nketa Drive, 9th Avenue and 12th Avenue.