If all goes to plan, the N1 highway between the east of Worcester and Glen Heatlie will be upgraded and become a double lane, but for now the project is in the preliminary design phase.
In this phase engineers are considering the design options that would best service road users. It is envisaged that the upgrade will result in the development of additional lanes to increase capacity and tie in with the long-term dual carriageway vision towards Laingsburg.
The South African National Roads Agency (Sanral) recently held an information session in Worcester about improvements as part of its stakeholder engagement priorities.
“We specifically wanted to ensure we reach the relevant and affected stakeholders in terms of the necessary investigations for the design development. This involves surveys and soils sampling that need to happen for us to complete the preliminary designs. The investigations are likely to require access to private land, on the farms adjacent to the road reserve,” said David Le Cordeur, Sanral project manager.
To this end, the project and its various design options were introduced to the stakeholders. This was the first of a series of stakeholder engagements in accordance with the project timeline. It is envisaged that the detailed design will be completed in 2024.
The project was welcomed by Raymond Esau, Director Strategic Support Services of the Breede Valley Municipality, who said the project brings good news to the people of the Breede Valley.
“We are happy that Sanral is recognising the importance of stakeholder engagement right at the start of the process.”
Randall Cable, Sanral Western Region Manager, said the Sanral Board are committed that no Sanral project will commence without engaging the relevant stakeholders in the communities affected by infrastructure development. “We intend to honour that commitment. Once we get into the construction phase, we will again engage the community to talk about project participation opportunities for local labour and SMMEs. For now, our focus is on getting the designs approved so we can begin with this much-needed upgrade of the N1,” he said.
