To better manage, maintain and improve Limpopo’s ailing road infrastructure, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has signed a partnership agreement with the Roads Agency Limpopo (RAL).
RAL had calculated that it would need R122-billion to perform the required maintenance of road infrastructure under its jurisdiction and the CSIR would support the RAL’s efforts.
CSIR built environment executive director Dr Cornelius Ruiters added: “Roads drive the economy; in Limpopo, roads are particularly important it shares its borders with three neighbouring countries. It is South Africa’s gateway for freight transport deeper into Africa and the province is well-known as an eco-tourism destination,” he added.
Further, the road network and corridors formed part of the strategic integrated projects under the Presidential Infrastructure Coordinating Commission.
RAL CEO Petrus Matji said the partnership would initially focus on Limpopo’s road asset management – creating a detailed inventory of the province’s road assets, assessing their condition and rate of deterioration to ascertain which assets urgently needed maintenance or upgrades.
In this way, an informed road asset management strategy could be developed to accurately determine how the road infrastructure budget should best be applied and to tackle Limpopo’s road infrastructure challenges in a cost-effective, holistic fashion.
