Publications
Partners
The responsibility for the maintenance and upgrading of yet more roads in the Free State has been transferred to the South African National Roads Agency (Sanral). The premier, Mxolisi Dukwana, announced this during his second delivery of the State of the Province Address (Sopa) in Phuthaditjhaba on Thursday, 29 February.
These roads include the R700 between Bloemfontein and Bultfontein, the R710 between Bultfontein and Welkom, and the R30 between the R730 intersection north of Theunissen to Odendaalsrus.
According to Dukwana, the duties pertaining to these roads were transferred in February, and the distance covered by this translates to 222,70 km in total.
The latest transfer of important roads by the Free State government follows transfers done last year, after successful discussions between the government and Sanral.
These include the R26 between Ladybrand and Bethlehem, the R34 from the North West provincial border at Bloemhof to linking traffic through to KwaZulu-Natal via Vrede, and the R74 from Harrismith to Oliviershoek.
Combined, these roads represent a distance of 568,75 km. The duties of these roads were transferred to Sanral in October.
The roads in question are the major arteries through which the economy pulses in the Free State, KwaZulu-Natal and North West.
The takeover by Sanral is owing to the Free State government’s failure to eradicate the backlog in maintaining and repairing deteriorating roads, which has led to about 70% of Free State roads declared a danger to motorists due to terrible conditions, noted with potholes that expand into sinkholes.
The agriculture industry in the province has been lamenting for years the effect on profit due to the crumbling road infrastructure, stating farmers struggle to transport their produce to the market.
This, despite being a driving force in the Free State economy. It has been pointed out that the neglect of provincial road infrastructure impacts negatively on the economy and potential sustainable growth.
Dukwana announced in the Sopa that ongoing provincial projects from the 2023-’24 financial year included the maintenance of and construction to numerous roads.
These include the Hennenman-Kroonstad-Virginia, Viljoenskroon-Orkney, Senekal-Lindley, Lindley-Petrus Steyn, Zastron-Sterkspruit, Tweespruit-Excelsior, Senekal-Rosendal-Ficksburg, Koppies-Sasolburg, Heilbron (Phase 2), Jacobsdal-Koffiefontein, and Tweespruit–Hobhouse networks.
Primary roads earmarked for upgrading include the Qwaqwa primary roads, which involve: the Setsing to Monontsha border; Matebeleng to Makgalaneng road; Bolata Shopping Centre to Elizabeth Ross Hospital route; Thiboloha to Maluti Bus Services road; Riverside to Namahadi (Sekoto) road; and the Mmakong Village and Lusaka to Qholaqhwe Main Road route.
Dukwana said R125 million had been budgeted for the maintenance of gravel roads throughout the province.
- Meanwhile, Roy Jankielsohn, the DA’s Free State premier candidate, described Dukwana’s Sopa as uninspiring and failing to inspire confidence, highlighting the inability to address crises impacting on residents.
He said no attention was given to the fact that several people in the province did not have access to a reliable supply of clean water in their taps.
“The premier elaborated on state capture and corruption in the Free State, but what he did not mention was that the most important reason for state capture and corruption is the implementation of the ANC’s cadre policy.
“Cadre deployment has allowed ANC factions in the Free State to entrench their vested interests in municipalities and provincial government and plunder our people’s resources. His greatest opposition to implementing his proposals will be from within his own deeply divided and factionalised party in the Free State.
“He also indicated that the province was creating jobs and people were employed, despite the reality of the high unemployment rate and 62% of people still living in poverty. It was evident in the faces of the people around the hall that the R5 million used to host the 2024 Sopa would have been better used to assist and improve the lives of the community in Qwaqwa,” said Jankielsohn.
According to Dukwana, since 2019, the Free State government has created 282 907 work opportunities against a five-year target of 260 000 through the Expanded Public Works Programme. He said the Presidential Employment Stimulus had enabled the creation of 87 357 job opportunities, supporting 24 733 livelihoods and retaining 1 680 jobs in the period of April to December 2023.
