6 April 2006

1. Current Work Areas

Construction work commenced in November 2005 and the current work areas include the following: a) Construction of a concrete barrier in the median to allow for widening of the freeway. b) Retaining wall on the entrance ramp from Jan Smuts Highway to allow for an additional lane in the eastbound direction from Jan Smuts Highway to Brickfield Road. c) The construction of the New Jan Smuts Highway Link Road in the vicinity of Westridge Park. The existing retaining walls have been demolished to allow for the widening of the Western Freeway and the construction of the Link Road. New retaining walls are in progress. d) Widening of the westbound carriageway between Christian Centre and Jan Smuts Highway, including the widening of the Waterfall Road Bridge, is in progress to allow for an additional lane between Brickfield Road and Jan Smuts Highway. e) Minor works in Randles Road and Garth Road to allow for the widening and repositioning of Randles Road and Garth Road which are necessary to allow for the freeway widening.

2. Current Traffic Accommodation Measures

The current work area in the median necessitates the continued closure of the fast lane of the prior to the entrance ramps from the , heading towards the city. Road users are urged to exercise caution and to select the middle or slow lane on the N3 prior to the merge of the entrance ramps from the N2. The work area in the median also necessitates the closure of the fast lane of the Western Freeway from Brickfield Road, heading westbound towards the N3, and eastbound towards the city.

On the Western Freeway west bound carriageway, the slow lane from the Berea Road South on- ramp up to the Brickfield Road off-ramp has been closed. Three lanes remain available for traffic travelling in a westerly direction. On the westbound carriageway from Brickfield Road and Jan Smuts Highway, towards the N3, the fast lane will be closed during off-peak periods between 09:00 and 15:00 to allow construction vehicles to enter the median work zone safely. During peak hours the full three lanes will be open to traffic.

The old link road from Berea Road South to Jan Smuts Highway has been closed permanently. Motorists are advised to continue on Berea Road South, turn left into Ridge Road and right into Charles Strachan Road which joins Jan Smuts Highway. The new Jan Smuts Highway Link Road is under construction.

The left hand shoulder on the eastbound entrance ramp from Jan Smuts Highway remains closed and barricaded to allow for the construction of a retaining wall.

Road users are advised that every effort will be made to keep the traffic disruption to a minimum. To this end, a minimum of three lanes will be open to traffic during peak hours heading towards Durban after the merge of the N2 and the N3 traffic and for traffic heading out of Durban. Road users are urged to heed the speed restrictions and to exercise caution during construction.

3. Project Description and Plan

The eThekwini Municipality is to spend R110 million on a major upgrade of the Western Freeway. The freeway, which is one of ’s busiest roads, was built in the 1970’s and has outlived its service life. Rehabilitation is now urgently required to prevent a rapid deterioration of the road.

The Western Freeway serves as the gateway to the city for all traffic entering the city from the N2 North and South and the N3 to the west via the EB Cloete Interchange. It will be one of the vital connections needed for the smooth running of the 2010 Soccer World Cup in terms of road infrastructure. The freeway from Candella Road overpass in the west to Tollgate Bridge in the east will be under construction and widened at certain points. An additional lane in both directions of traffic flow will be created, extending the existing three-lane freeway to four lanes from Candella Road to Jan Smuts Highway Interchange. In addition to the four lane sections, the work will also provide for five lanes between Jan Smuts Interchange and Brickfield Road Interchange and from Westridge to Tollgate Bridge. This, along with improvements to various ramp entrances, will improve traffic flow, especially in the morning and afternoon peak periods.

The Department of Agriculture and Environmental Affairs (DAEA) has given environmental approval for the road upgrade, and construction will be in progress from November 2005 with completion by the end of July 2007. Mr Dave Thomas, from the eThekwini Roads Department, said “It is a major route which will affect many road users while roadworks take place to replace the old roads which were built in the 1970’s.”

Construction will take place in three distinct phases. The first phase will involve work on the outer edges and in the median to create space for the freeway widening. The work in the phase includes repositioning of Randles Road and Garth Road, widening of Waterfall and Brickfield Road Bridges, a new link road from Tollgate Bridge via the disused westbound on-ramp bridge onto Jan Smuts Highway opposite the Mayville Post Office, and the construction of a new concrete median barrier.

The second phase involves the widening of the freeway to create sufficient width for the additional lanes. The third and final phase involves the road rehabilitation and resurfacing. Much of the third phase work will take place at night in order to minimise traffic disruption.

The roadworks will result in some disruption to traffic, but road users are urged to bear in mind the long-term benefits of the upgrade. Every effort will be made to minimise disruption by ensuring that at least three lanes are open to traffic during peak periods.

4. Construction Photographs

JAN SMUTS ONRAMP RETAINING WALL Retaining Wall Footing in Progress

JAN SMUTS ONRAMP RETAINING WALL Preserving Existing Dwellings

MEDIAN BARRIER WALL Median Barrier Under Construction

MEDIAN BARRIER WALL Completed Barriers

RANDLES RETAINING WALL Retaining Wall in Progress

TOLLGATE RETAINING WALL Demolition of Existing Retaining Wall

TOLLGATE RETAINING WALL Footing of New Retaining Wall

WATERFALL BRIDGE Abutment Widening in Progress

OUTER EDGE WIDENING, WESTBOUND CARRIAGEWAY Box Widening at Durban Christian Centre

OUTER EDGE WIDENING, WESTBOUND CARRIAGEWAY Fill Widening at Durban Christian Centre