Eight contractors rehabilitating the Bulawayo–Victoria Falls Road say they are racing against time and the rains to deliver a safer, wider and more modern highway along one of Zimbabwe’s busiest tourism and freight corridors.
The Ministry of Roads and Infrastructural Development, accompanied by officials from the Zimbabwe National Road Administration (ZINARA), last week conducted a media tour to assess progress on the 435km route, which had sparked an outcry from motorists and tourists, some of whom had begun taking photographs of “huge potholes” to highlight the road’s deterioration.
Fossil Contracting, responsible for the first 51.4km from Bulawayo, said it has already opened 6.3km to traffic. Head of Operations Engineer Kudakwashe Maguta said the company’s chainage begins “at the Statue,” covering 48.6km plus an additional 2.8km near Airport Road.
“Of this first section which we have opened, 5km have been completed double seal,” he said. “The other 1.2km is having tailcoat… so the first 6.3km should be ready for opening any day.”
He said another 8.8km had been opened for construction and should be ready by mid-February.
“By mid-February we should be having a total of 15km opened to traffic,” he added. He noted that Kalahari sands posed a major engineering challenge but said, “We have come up with innovative solutions… blending that Kalahari sand with the gravel that is locally available, and we are producing perfect results.”
Masimba Construction, working on a 50km stretch, said its first priority was making the corridor drivable.
Group CEO Fungai Matawa said, “Our first approach was dealing with potholes… there are actually ditches on the road.” He said the company wanted the “worst section” to be ridable by Christmas. Project Manager Engineer Blessing Nhau said 5km had been stabilised and was ready for priming.
“We had a number of accidents, breakdowns… so that was our first approach,” he said. The company aims to finish 10km before shutting down for the holidays but has been delayed by moisture beneath the surface. “Water then stays locked underneath… moisture doesn’t go out quickly,” Nhau said.
Syvern Investments, responsible for another 50km, said 5km is already open to traffic. Project Manager Arnold Mutungwazi said, “We started in June and to date we have finished 5km… We expect to finish the project by mid-August next year, all things being equal in terms of funding and resources.” He said an additional 9km was ready for cement stabilisation.
Under a Public Private Partnership, Road Trackers is upgrading a massive 240km stretch from Lupane to Nkayi, Silobela and Kwekwe. Project Manager Brighton Vundla said the works include both earth and tarred sections. “The road is 240km… we have two stages,” he said.
“Base three is natural gravel… base two is natural gravel stabilised with three percent cement, then base one is G1.” He said 15km had reached subgrade level, and 10km of base work was complete. “On this project… we are putting tollgates and two weighbridges because we want to safeguard this infrastructure from these trucks,” he said.
Bitumen Resources, working on a 51km section from Cross Jotsholo to Lupane, said it had primed 5.4km and would begin surfacing on Monday. Engineers said, “By 15 December, we planned to commission the 5.4km.” They added that another 5km was being processed up to base-two level ahead of the 19 December shutdown. Full completion is targeted for December next year.
Tensor Systems, also covering 51km, aims to surface 5km before the holidays. Project Manager Engineer Gerald Mutume said, “We want to surface about 5km before we break for the holiday… before we close we would have done about 5km and finish the project by August if it doesn’t rain a lot.”
Asphalt Products is widening the 51km stretch between Gwayi and Hwange. Project Engineer Panganai Mataure said, “What we are doing is increase the width from 7 to 9 metres surfaced,” adding that 16km had already been cleared and filled. He said traffic would be diverted via Dete while works continue and that access routes were being created for nearby communities. “We are also making another access for the clinic which is very crucial for ambulances,” he said.
Bitumen World, responsible for 32km under ERP 2, said it had opened 3.6km and expected to open another 7km before shutdown. Project Manager Leeroy Vusumuzi Musindo said, “Before shutdown we are working on opening another 7km towards the north of the section.” He said rains had occasionally disrupted construction.
LiNash Construction, responsible for 52km, said it was carrying out both asphalt overlays and full reconstruction.
“Our target is that before the year ends, we should be able to do 10km of asphalt overlay,” the company said, adding that the project should be completed by May next year. The contractor said it had engaged communities from Victoria Falls to Matetsi to ensure local employment. “We have an experienced team that are ready to serve the nation,” the engineer said.
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