Cape Town - The City said it is making good progress with the rehabilitation of Giel Basson Drive.
Mayoral Committee Member for Transport, Felicity Purchase visited the project site on Thursday, and she said that she is "very pleased to see the amount of work the project team and contractor has managed to cover since commencing with construction work".
"It is essential that we maintain and improve key roads such as Giel Basson, which links various of our residential areas to the nearby commercial nodes," said Purchase.
The City of Cape Town is spending R38 million on the rehabilitation of a key portion of Giel Basson Drive. The rehabilitated section of the road will cover the section between the N1 off-ramp and Voortrekker Road.
Purchase said that to date, the contractor has completed milling the asphalt off the slow lane in both directions and have installed new service ducts under the road for future services to avoid the digging of trenches across the newly rehabilitated road in future.
The existing material on the slow lane in the northbound direction towards the N1 has been removed and recycled by adding cement and bitumen to strengthen it before using it on the new asphalt layer. This recycling method strengthens the base of the road, and the team has now started with this process in the southbound direction as well.
The City said first of two layers of asphalt will be added in the next couple of weeks, if all goes as planned.
This portion of Giel Basson Drive is one of the main connections from the N1 and also provides an important link to the Cape Town International Airport.
The City said it is making good progress with the rehabilitation of Giel Basson Drive, but that construction is expected to take another nine months, pending any unforeseen delays. Picture: Supplied
The City added that all workers on site are using their personal protective equipment as required and the City’s appointed Health and Safety agent is ensuring that all additional Covid-19 related safety requirements are in place and remain so throughout the project.
Construction is expected to take another nine months, pending any unforeseen delays.
One lane in each direction will remain closed to give the contractor the requisite amount of room to work. Thus, traffic will be affected in both directions on Giel Basson Drive. Appropriate signage will be in place and road users are requested to please adhere to the signage displayed over this period.
"Roadworks by their very nature come with some inconvenience. I thank all road users in advance for their patience while we are busy with this project. Once completed, we will all benefit from an improved road. The city’s road network is one of our most important and valued assets. We have to undertake regular maintenance and upgrades to prolong the longevity and in meeting the demand as traffic volumes increase," said Purchase.