TAUNG GOLD JEANETTE PROJECT, FREE STATE TRAFFIC IMPACT STUDY
APRIL 2016 TAUNG GOLD JEANETTE PROJECT, FREE STATE TRAFFIC IMPACT STUDY SLR Africa (Block 7) Fourways Manor Office Park Cnr. Roos and Macbeth Streets FOURWAYS 2060
Tel. No.: +27 11 467 0945 Fax No.: +27 11 467 0978
Revision 1
Project No.: 19520.R Date: April 2016
WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff Green Reef Village Unit 5, Greenworks Street BOKSBURG 1459
Tel. No.: +27 (0) 11 450 2290 www.wspgroup.com www.pbworld.com QUALITY MANAGEMENT
ISSUE/REVISION FIRST ISSUE REVISION 1 REVISION 2 REVISION 3
Remarks
Date 17 March 2016 18 April 2016
Cornelia Hutchinson Prepared by (Pr Eng)
Signature
Checked by Rod Strong (Pr Eng)
Signature
Cornelia Hutchinson Cornelia Hutchinson Authorised by (Pr Eng) (Pr Eng)
Signature
Project Number 19520.R 19520.R
Report Number 19520.R/11 19520.R/11
W:\Deltek W:\Deltek Projects\19000\19520.R - Projects\19000\19520.R Jeanette Project TIA\11 - - Jeanette Project TIA\11 File Reference Reports\11.1 Other - Reports\11.1 Other Reports\Jeanette Reports\Jeanette Project_Traffic Impact Project_Traffic Impact Study_2016-04-18.docx Study_2016-04-18.docx ii
PRODUCTION TEAM
CLIENT
Project Manager Natasha Smyth
WSP | PARSONS BRINCKERHOFF
Traffic Engineer Cornelia Hutchinson
Reviewer Rod Strong
SUBCONSULTANTS
Trafftrans Frans van Heerden
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
1 TRAFFIC SPECIALIST DETAILS ...... 1
1.1 PERSONAL DETAILS ...... 1
1.2 QUALIFICATIONS ...... 1
1.3 RELEVANT EXPERIENCE ...... 1
1.4 PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS ...... 1
1.5 DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE ...... 2
2 INTRODUCTION ...... 3
2.1 PURPOSE ...... 3
2.2 DATES AND TIMELINES...... 3
2.3 GUIDELINES, REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS ...... 3
2.4 SCOPE ...... 3
2.5 METHODOLOGY ...... 3
2.6 LOCALITY ...... 5
3 DESCRIPTION OF DEVELOPMENT ...... 6
3.1 EXISTING LAND USE ...... 6
3.2 PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT ...... 6
3.3 EXISTING ROAD NETWORK ...... 6
4 TRAFFIC DATA ...... 7
4.1 INTERSECTION COUNTS ...... 7
4.2 LINK COUNTS...... 7
5 TRIP GENERATION AND DISTRIBUTION ...... 8
5.1 TRIP GENERATION ...... 8
5.2 WORST-CASE TRAFFIC SCENARIO...... 10
5.3 TRIP ASSIGNMENT AND DISTRIBUTION ...... 11
5.4 TRAFFIC GROWTH ...... 11
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6 OPERATIONAL ASSESSMENT ...... 12
6.1 LEVELS OF SERVICE ...... 12
6.2 ANALYSIS SCENARIOS ...... 12
6.3 SIDRA ANALYSIS RESULTS ...... 12
6.4 MITIGATION MEASURES ...... 13
7 MINE ACCESS ...... 14
7.1 ACCESS SPACING ...... 14
7.2 QUEUE STORAGE LENGTH...... 14
8 ROAD SAFETY ISSUES ...... 15
8.1 SHOULDER SIGHT DISTANCE...... 15
8.2 HEAVY VEHICLE TURNING MOVEMENTS ...... 15
8.3 ROAD SURFACE CONDITIONS...... 16
8.4 RAILWAY LEVEL CROSSING...... 16
9 ROAD PAVEMENT MANAGEMENT ...... 17
9.1 CURRENT TRAFFIC LOADING...... 17
9.2 ADDITIONAL LOADING ON THE R30...... 17
9.3 ADDITIONAL LOADING ON S86 ...... 19
9.4 SUGGESTED MEASURES ...... 19
10 INTERESTED AND AFFECTED PARTIES ...... 20
10.1 ISSUES RAISED BY IAP’S ...... 20
11 CONCLUSIONS & RECOMMENDATIONS ...... 21
11.1 CONCLUSIONS ...... 21
11.2 RECOMMENDATIONS ...... 21
12 REFERENCES...... 22
13 APPENDICES ...... 23
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APPENDICES
APPENDIX A FIGURES APPENDIX B PHOTOGRAPHS APPENDIX C TRAFFIC DATA APPENDIX D SIDRA RESULTS APPENDIX E NEMA REGULATIONS (2014) CHECKLIST APPENDIX F CURRICULUM VITAE
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1 TRAFFIC SPECIALIST DETAILS
1.1 PERSONAL DETAILS à Ms. Cornelia Hutchinson à ID Number: 8108050032088 à Contact Details: Tel: 082 675 0299 E-mail: [email protected]
1.2 QUALIFICATIONS
Cornelia Hutchinson is a qualified professional civil engineer specialising in Traffic Engineering. She obtained the following degrees at the University of Pretoria:
à B.Eng Civil Engineering (First Class) in 2003; and à B.Eng (Hons.) Transportation Engineering (with distinction) in 2011.
1.3 RELEVANT EXPERIENCE The Traffic Specialist has the following relevant project experience. Her comprehensive Curriculum Vitae is included in Appendix F. à Expansion of Klipfontein Section of Middelburg Mine and associated closure of a section of the D253 Provincial Road, Mpumalanga (2015); à The Cascade Iron Ore Mining Project in Mpumalanga (2014); à Anglo Alexander Coal Mine near Kriel in Mpumalanga (2014); à Butsanani Rietvlei Opencast Coal Mine in Mpumalanga (2014); à Yzermyn Coal Mine near Wakkerstroom in Mpumalanga(2012); à Sintel Char Plant Expansion and Grootegeluk Coal Mine in Lepalale (2011); à New Largo Coal Mine in Mpumalanga (2011); and à Eerstelingsfontein Opencast Coal Mine in Belfast, Mpumalanga (2011) à Professional affiliations: Engineering Council of South Africa (20130451); South African Institute of Civil Engineers (201236); and Institute of Transportation Engineers (1043352)
1.4 PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS The Traffic Specialist belongs to the following professional affiliations: à Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA), registration number 20130451; and à South African Institute of Civil Engineers, member number 201236.
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1.5 DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE
I, Cornelia Hutchinson, hereby declare that I am an independent consultant and have no conflict of interest related to the work of this report. Specially, I declare that I have no personal financial connections to the relevant property owners, developers, planners, financiers or consultants of the development. I declare that the opinions expressed in this report are my own and a true reflection of my professional expertise. The views and findings expressed in this report are objective and might therefore not be favourable to the applicant/client.
______Cornelia Hutchinson
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2 INTRODUCTION
2.1 PURPOSE
WSP Group Africa (Pty) Ltd was appointed by Synergistics (part of the SLR group) to conduct a Traffic Impact Assessment for the Jeanette Project gold mine just north of Welkom in the Free State. This study was conducted as part of the Environmental Impact Assessment in terms of the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act, 2002 (MPRDA, No. 28 of 2002) and the National Environmental Management Act, 1998 (NEMA, No. 107 of 1998) required for the Jeanette Project.
2.2 DATES AND TIMELINES
In order to develop the base and horizon year traffic scenarios for the analysis, estimations and assumptions had to be made in terms of the dates and timelines of the various project phases. These were based on the information available at the time of the study. It should however be noted that these dates and timelines are subject to change depending on receipt of legislative approvals and market conditions.
2.3 GUIDELINES, REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS This Traffic Impact Study was based on the principles and guidelines of the South African Manual for Traffic Impact Studies, Report RR 93/635 of the Department of Transport (1995).
Road safety considerations such as shoulder sight distance and stopping sight distance were evaluated in terms of the Geometric Design of Rural Roads technical guidelines, document TRH17 published by the Department of Transport in 1988.
Recommended road signs and markings should comply with the requirements of the Southern African Development Community Road Traffic Signs Manual, issued by the Department of Transport (1998).
A checklist with the requirements for specialist reports in terms of the new NEMA Regulations(6) (2014) are included in Appendix E, which cross-refence the relevant sections of this report. 2.4 SCOPE
The study covers the following aspects related to traffic:
à A brief description of the proposed development; à Discussion of trip generation, distribution and assignment associated with the proposed mine; à Analysis of traffic operating conditions for the proposed mine; à Comment on traffic and road safety issues; à Comment on on-going road pavement management and maintenance; and à Conclusions and recommendations. 2.5 METHODOLOGY
The Traffic Impact Study was conducted as follows:
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2.5.1 Site Inspection
An inspection of the public road network in the vicinity of the Jeanette Project was conducted by the Traffic Engineer on Wednesday, 17 June 2015. This was considered to be a “normal day” in terms of traffic flows, i.e. outside of public or school holidays. The outcome of the site investigation is not sensitive to the season during which it is conducted.
A visual inspection of the roads and pavement condition of the R30 was conducted and the intersections at which traffic counts were required were identified. The season site investigation is therefore not very significant to the study.
2.5.2 Data Collection
Manual, classified traffic counts were conducted on a typical weekday, Thursday, 23 July 2015 from 06:00 to 18:00 at the three critical intersections identified during the site visit. The geometric layout of the intersections were verified at the same time. Continuous (24-hour/7-day) electronic counts were conducted at two locations along the R30 during July and August 2015.
The traffic patterns of the study area is not expected to be sensitive to seasonal fluctuations (other than school holidays) and the data is therefore considered to be representative of normal traffic conditions.
2.5.3 Baseline Assessment
The collected traffic data was analysed by means of SIDRA 6.1 software in order to determine the baseline traffic conditions.
2.5.4 Trip Generation and Distribution
Based on the information contained in the Pre-Feasibility Study for the Jeanette Project (Minxcon Projects, August 2014), information provided by the client and reasonable assumptions where information was not available, the trip generation during the construction and operational phases of the mine was estimated.
2.5.5 Horizon Year Assessment
The generated trips were added to the counted traffic data and analysed in SIDRA to determine the impact of the Jeanette Project on the traffic operations at the critical intersections. The worst- case traffic horizon year was determined by evaluating the combined impact of the construction and operational trip generation.
2.5.6 Assessment of Road Pavement
Visual inspections of the existing road pavement of the R30 was conducted during the site visit and a photo and video record was compiled for further assessment.
The existing 7-day average light and heavy vehicle traffic volumes along the R30 were obtained by means of electronic counts. The expected heavy vehicle loading by the Jeanette Project on the R30 was estimated and added to the current loading to determine the potential impact of the proposed mine.
2.5.7 Access Requirements
The suitability of the location of the proposed accesses to the mine was evaluated in terms of capacity and safety.
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2.5.8 Conclusions and Recommendations
From the visual inspections, SIDRA analysis and assessment as described above, conclusions and recommendations were made in order to mitigate the expected traffic and heavy vehicle impact of the Jeanette Project.
2.6 LOCALITY
The Jeanette Project site is located along the R30 approximately 20 km north-west of Welkom in the Free State. The locality plan (Figure 1) is included herewith in Appendix A.
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3 DESCRIPTION OF DEVELOPMENT
3.1 EXISTING LAND USE
The historical Jeanette Gold Mine ceased operations in 1955. The existing service infrustructure in the mine area is well established, including roads, railway lines, a water pipeline and powerline, which will be utilised for the proposed project.
The mine area surface is mostly vacant and used for agricultural purposes at the moment.
3.2 PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT
The extent of the proposed mining right area is shown in Figure 2 in Appendix A.
The proposed underground gold mine will have an estimated steady production of approximately 1 100 kilograms of gold per month. Steady state production is expected to be reached after 5 to 7 years of shaft sinking, followed by 18 years of steady state production. At the time of the study it was estimated that the first tonnes would be treated through the plant in 2023, i.e. steady state production was estimated to be reached by 2028 at the earliest.
Gold will be processed on site and will be transported by helicopter, since the volumes are small and the gold is a high security-risk commodity. The gold will be flown out of the processing plant to Rand Refineries.
3.3 EXISTING ROAD NETWORK
The proposed mine is situated to the east of the R30 provincial road, which is a 2-lane undivided roadway with a wide surfaced shoulder (±2m) and speed limit of 100km/h. The speed limit is reduced to 80km/h in advance of intersections along the R30. At the time of the site visit (17 June 2015) the surface of the road was observed to be in a good condition. It appeared that the road had recently been resurfaced and the road markings were still new. The sections of the R30 towards Welkom had only been pre-marked at the time. Refer to Photograph 1 in Appendix B.
The mine area is traversed by a gravel road (S86), which will provide access to the mine. The road is more than 7 m wide and adequate for two-way traffic. The posted speed limit on this road is 80km/h (see Photographs 2 and 3 in Appendix B). Mine access will be provided by means of the S86. The proposed location for the access road is shown in Figure 3 in Appendix A. Employees will mostly gain access from the south, via the town of Odendaalsrus, and heavy vehicles will access the mine from the north via the R30.
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4 TRAFFIC DATA
4.1 INTERSECTION COUNTS
Manual, classified traffic counts were carried out on Thursday, 23 July 2015 from 06:00 to 18:00 (12-hours) at 6 intersections along the R30 and in Odendaalsrus. The intersections where counts were conducted are shown in Figures 4A and 4B in Appendix A and listed below:
à M2: R30 and Buffalo Road (access road to Allanridge); à M3: R30 and S86 gravel road; à M4: Erleigh Boulevard and Hauptfleisch Street; à M5: R70 and R34 (Findley Avenue); à M6: R30 and Odendaal Street; and à M7: R30 and R34 (Findley Avenue).
The peak hours of these intersections occur between 6:45 and 9:15 (AM peak); and 15:00 and 18:00 (PM peak). The peak hour traffic volumes at each of the critical intersections are shown in Figures 5A to 6B in Appendix A. The comprehensive traffic data is included in Appendix C.
4.2 LINK COUNTS
Electronic 7-day/24-hour link counts were conducted at two locations on the R30 to determine the current traffic volumes and light:heavy vehicle split on this road. The electronic counting stations are indicated on Figures 4A and 4B in Appendix A and are listed below:
à E1: North of the T-junction of the R30 and the S86 gravel road; and à E2: South of the T-junction of the R30 and the R34 (Findley Avenue).
The counts were initially conducted at both stations from Thursday, 23 July to Wednesday, 29 July 2015. Due to technical problems the data at station E1 was not classified during these counts and the counts were repeated at this station from Friday, 31 July to Thursday, 6 August 2015.
The detailed traffic data is included herewith in Appendix C and summarised in Table 3.1 below.
Table 3.1: Seven-day Average Volumes (24-hours)
Vehicle Count Station Northbound Southbound Both Directions Classification Light 1089 1005 2094 E1 Heavy 167 250 417 All 1256 1255 2511 Light 2473 2193 4666 E2 Heavy 364 753 1117 All 2837 2946 5783
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5 TRIP GENERATION AND DISTRIBUTION
5.1 TRIP GENERATION
Trip generation rates for this type of development are not available from standard sources. The trip generation used has been extracted from information provided by the client. This information is subdivided into the construction phase and the operating phase and can be summarised as follows:
5.1.1 Construction Phase
At the time of this study site establishment was expected to begin in 2017 with an estimated duration of ± 9 months. For the purpose of the assessment construction was therefore assumed to commence in the beginning of 2018 and estimated to be completed by 2027. Based on available information at the time of the study, operations were assumed to commence in 2023, which could potentially result in a 4-year overlap between construction and operations.
The approach regarding surface infrastructure will be to erect and commission the permanent infrastructure needed for steady state conditions in the early stages of the project. However, during the initial stages of shaft sinking, use will be made of temporary park homes for site offices, change houses, compressors, workshops and stores whilst the permanent infrastructure is under construction.
The Jeanette Project will include establishment and construction of the following infrastructure on site:
à Sinking of 2 new shafts; à Developing the following surface and underground infrastructure:
< Surface parking;
< Surface office complex and ablution facilities;
< Surface workshop;
< Surface change house;
< Security facility;
< Explosives magazines;
< Lamp room;
< Shaft headgear, bank area & winder housing;
< Surface conveyor system;
< Surface dams;
< Decline development;
< Underground workshop;
< Underground pump stations; and
< Underground conveyor system. à Services – water, electricity, compressed air; à Information Technology infrastructure; à Process plant; à Tailings facility; and Taung Gold Jeanette Project TIS WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff Synergistics (SLR group) Project No. 19520.R April 2016 9
à Waste rock dump.
5.1.1.1 Employee Trip Generation
An estimated 1 400 employment opportunities will be available during the construction phase. It was assumed that these employees will work between 07:00 and 17:00 and their peak travel time will therefore coincide with the peak hours of the background traffic. The assumed trip generation characteristics of the construction staff is summarised in Table 4.2 below. For a worst-case scenario it was assumed that this maximum staff complement would apply throughout the construction period.
Table 4.2: Construction Staff Peak Hour Trip Generation
Employee Employees Transport Mode Number Vehicle Category % of of PCU’s* % Qty Vehicle Type Occupancy (EC) EC Vehicles Managerial/ Technicians/ 5% 70 Passenger Car 100% 1.5 47 47 Clerical Skilled/semi- Passenger Car 50% 1.5 117 117 25% 350 skilled Minibus Taxi 50% 12 15 15 Unskilled Minibus Taxi 50% 12 41 41 70% 980 labourers Bus 50% 60 9 45 Total 100% 1 400 229 265
* Passenger Car Units: It was assumed that one bus is equavalent to 5 PCU’s.
5.1.1.2 Heavy Vehicle Trip Generation
Information regarding the heavy vehicle trip generation during construction was not available at the time of this study and it was therefore assumed that 10 bi-directional heavy vehicle trips will be generated per day (outside peak hours of the road network) during construction for material delivery and waste collection. It was assumed that the construction plant will remain on site for the construction period, i.e. not having a significant impact on the road pavement.
5.1.2 Operating Phase
Operation is planned to commence in 2023 and steady-state production is expected to be attained 5 to 7 years later, i.e. 2028 to 2030. For security reasons the processed gold will only be transported by helicopter.
5.1.2.1 Employee Trip Generation
The mine will employ an estimated number of 1 113 staff members during peak operations. The mine will operate in three shifts of eight hours each with 320 persons per shift. The shift times will be as follows: à Shift 1: 06:00 to 14:00; à Shift 2: 14:00 to 22:00; and à Shift 3: 22:00 to 06:00. The shift change times and trip generation of Shifts 2 and 3 will not occur at the same time as the peak periods of the background traffic. Employees starting at 06:00 AM will also travel before commencement of the morning peak hour, however the staff leaving after Shift 1 may travel during the morning traffic peak hour and were therefore included in the operational assessment of the intersections.
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The remaining number of employees was assumed to be office/admin staff working normal office hours and therefore traveling during normal peak hours.
In order to consider a worst-case scenario the maximum number of employees was considered during the ramp-up stages of the mine. The assumed trip generation characteristics of the operational staff is summarised in Table 4.3 below.
Table 4.3: Operational Staff Peak Hour Trip Generation
Employee Transport Mode Number Number of Vehicle Category % of of PCU’s* Employees Vehicle Type Occupancy (EC) EC Vehicles Office Staff 153 Passenger Car 100% 1.5 102 102 Passenger Car 5% 1.5 11 11 Shift Workers 320 Minibus Taxi 25% 12 7 7 (3 x shifts) (per shift) Bus 70% 60 4 20 Total 1 113 124 140
* Passenger Car Units: It was assumed that one bus is equivalent to 5 PCU’s.
5.1.2.2 Heavy Vehicle Trip Generation
It was estimated that the mine would generate approximately five truck trips per day during normal operations (importing materials, service providers, etc). Rock waste from mining operations will be a marketable commodity. The estimated monthly tonnage of waste to be sold in crushed and screened form is 30 000 tons. Assuming transport by means of 30 ton trucks this could potentially result in 1 000 trucks per month. Since these trips are not expected to be generated during the peak hours, it was excluded from the intersection analysis, but considered for the pavement loading assessment.
5.2 WORST-CASE TRAFFIC SCENARIO
From the above it is concluded that the construction and operational phases will overlap for approximately four years, as shown on the timeline below. The peak hour trip generation of the mine from site establishment through to normal operations is summarised in Table 4.4, which indicates that the maximum trip generation is expected during the aforementioned 4-year overlap period. Taking the effect of background traffic growth into account it can therefore be concluded that worst-case traffic scenario would be 2027, which was considered in the operational analysis of the intersections.
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Table 4.4: Peak Hour Trip Generation over Time
5.3 TRIP ASSIGNMENT AND DISTRIBUTION
5.3.1 Employee Trips
Taung Gold indicated that employees would be responsible for their own accommodation and it was therefore assumed that staff will reside in nearby towns and residential areas. The trips were assigned in the following proportions:
Table 4.5: Employee Trip Assignment Town/ Percentage of Position relative Affected Township Employees to Jeanette Mine Intersections* Bothaville and 15% North (±40km) M3 Khotsong Allanridge 10% North-west M2 and M3 Hospital Park and 10% Sout-west M4 and M6 Hestersrus Odendaalsrus 10% South M4 Thabong Extensions, South-east Riebeeckstad and 10% M4 and M5 (±20km) surrounds Welkom, Rheederpark and 30% South (±20km) M4, M5 and M7 surrounds Kroonstad, Thelma 15% East (±60km) M4 and Kutlwanong
* Refer to Section 3.1 for intersection numbers.
The trip distribution (combined construction and operational trips) is shown in Figures 7A to 8B in Appendix A
5.3.2 Heavy Vehicle Trips (Trucks)
All truck traffic will be accommodated from the northern access to the mine, via the T-junction of the R30 and S86.
Taking the heavy vehicles volumes indicated by the electronic counts into account, 30% of the truck traffic associated with the mine construction and operation was distributed to the norh-east and 70% to the south-west along the R30.
5.4 TRAFFIC GROWTH
An average growth rate of 3% was applied to the background traffic.
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6 OPERATIONAL ASSESSMENT
6.1 LEVELS OF SERVICE
Operating conditions of peak hours are normally assessed in terms of Levels of Service (LOS), V volume to capacity ratios ( /C) and average delay.
At this point it is worth considering what is meant in terms of levels of service. In this regard the following extract from the US Highway Capacity Manual is given:
“The concept of levels of service used qualitative measures that characterize operational conditions within a traffic stream and their perception by motorists and passengers. The descriptions of individual levels of service characterize these conditions in terms of such factors as speed and travel time, freedom to manoeuvre, traffic interruptions, and comfort and convenience.
Six levels of service are defined for each type of facility for which analysis procedures are available. They are given letter designations, from A to F, with LOS A representing the best operating conditions and LOS F the worst. Each level of service represents a range of operating conditions.
The volume of traffic that can be served under the stop-and-go conditions of LOS F is generally accepted as being lower than possible at LOS E, consequently, service flow rate E is the value that corresponds to the maximum flow rate, or capacity, on the facility. For most design or planning purposes, however, service flow rates D or C are usually used because they ensure a more acceptable quality of service to facility users.”
6.2 ANALYSIS SCENARIOS
The AM and PM peak hours of the following scenarios have been considered for analysis:
à 2015 Traffic: Existing traffic volumes obtained from the traffic counts; and à 2027 Traffic: Worst-case scenario with construction and operational trip volumes, as well as 3% annual growth applied to the background traffic. The traffic volumes and trip distribution for this scenario are shown on Figures 9A to 10B in Appendix A. 6.3 SIDRA ANALYSIS RESULTS
The critical intersections were analysed using SIDRA Software (Version 6.1). The schematic layouts of the intersections, as well as the detailed results are included in Appendix D and discussed below.
6.3.1 2015 Traffic Volumes
The SIDRA results indicate that all the critical intersections are currently operating at good levels V of service (LOS A and B), with /C ratios well below 0.950 and minimal delays.
6.3.2 2027 Traffic Volumes
The analysis of the 2027 traffic volumes showed that the impact of the proposed mine will not V result in any levels of service dropping to below the acceptable LOS D and all /C ratios will remain well below the maximum 0.950. Taking into account that the worst-case scenario does not result
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in unacceptable operational conditions at any of the critical intersections, it was not considered necessary to analyse any other scenarios.
6.4 MITIGATION MEASURES
The traffic impact of any proposed development should be mitigated under the following circumstances:
à If the LOS of any element of the facility drops below D; V à If the volume to capacity ( /C) ratio of any element of the facility increases above 0.95; and à If the contribution of the development is at least 2% of the sum of the critical lane volumes of the element. V à Or; where the baseline LOS is E or worse, or /C ratio is greater than 0.95, this baseline (prior to development) must be maintained or improved for the situation with the development included.
The above relates to the operating conditions during the peak hour traffic and considering the SIDRA results discussed in Section 5.3 above no mitigation measures are required at the critical intersections.
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7 MINE ACCESS
7.1 ACCESS SPACING
Access to the mine will be off the S86 at the proposed location shown on Figure 3 in Appendix A.
Taking the characteristics of the S86 into account it can be classified as rural Class 4 collector road. In terms of the South African Road Classification and Access Management Manual (TRH 26)(7) direct access to properties is allowed from this class of road.
The location of the proposed access road with the S86 is approximately halfway between two access roads to the east of the S86 and spaced more than 1km from both of these access roads.
This spacing is exceeds the minimum requirement and is considered to be safe and the proposed access location is considered to be acceptable from a traffic engineering point of view.
7.2 QUEUE STORAGE LENGTH
It was indicated that the access to the mine will be access controlled by means of a boom and will be manually operated by a guard. For this reason adequate queue storage length should be provided at the boom to avoid vehicles queueing in the road.
The maximum inbound volume will occur during the morning peak hour, i.e. 367 PCU’s. The estimated service rate at a manual operated boom is 200 vehicles per hour (vph). Since the hourly demand is higher than the service rate one inbound lane will not be sufficient. Two inbound lanes with at least 75 m stacking distance on each would be required.
The length of the proposed access road is approximately 475m and the required queue storage length could therefore easily be accommodated at the access control.
Since queing of outbound vehicles will not affect the public road network, one outbound lane could be provided.
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8 ROAD SAFETY ISSUES
The following issues are considered to be relevant to road safety: à Shoulder sight distance; à Heavy vehicle turning movements; and à Road surface conditions. 8.1 SHOULDER SIGHT DISTANCE
Shoulder sight distance is the distance that the driver of a vehicle that is stationary at the stop line of a minor road can see along the major road, to be able to enter or cross the major road before an approaching vehicle reaches the intersection. It is therefore a function of speed of vehicles traveling on the major road, the width of the major road and the type of vehicles that are trying to cross.
Shoulder sight distance should be considered at the T-junction of R30 with the S86 (gravel road) which will be the truck access to Jeanette mine. The current speed limit on the R30 is 100km/h and the road width is approximately 7.5 m. The worst-case design vehicle is a single unit and trailer (SU+T). According to TRH 17(2), Geometric Design of Rural Roads, the shoulder sight distance should be in the order of 380m.
The R30 to the south-west of the S86 is relatively straight and downhill, resulting in more than adequate shoulder sight distance in this direction. However, the shoulder sight distance to the north-east is limited to ± 250 m as a result of the climbing terrain in this direction.
It is therefore recommended that the speed limit on the R30 in advance of the S86 T-junction should be reduced to 60km/h. The required shoulder sight distance would then be reduced to ±230m, i.e. the available sight distance will be adequate. The speed should be reduced in increments of 20km/h by means of SARTSM(5) compliant road signs. The 60km/h signs should be implemented on the R30 northbound and southbound 300m in advance of the S86 T-junction. The 80km/h signs should be placed 200m in advance of the 60km/h signs.
8.2 HEAVY VEHICLE TURNING MOVEMENTS
The W107 and W108 intersection warning signs should be erected on the R30 120m in advance of the S86 T-junction (on either sides) in accordance with the requirements of the South African Road Traffic Signs Manual(5) (SARTSM). It is recommended that IN 11.569 supplementary warning plates be added to these warning signs indicating the presence of heavy vehicles at the intersection. Images of the aforementioned warning signs are shown below.
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8.3 ROAD SURFACE CONDITIONS
8.3.1 R30
As mentioned in Section 2.3 the visual assessment of the R30 between Welkom and the S86 revealed that the road had recently been refurbished and no surface problems were observed.
8.3.2 S86
The S86, which will provide access to Jeanette mine is a fairly smooth/even and flat gravel road, and no surface problem areas were observed.
8.4 RAILWAY LEVEL CROSSING
There is an existing railway level crossing on the S86/Haupfleish Street, ± 2.8 km from the Jeanette mining boundary and 1.5 km from Intersection M4 – see Photograph 4 in Appendix B. Road signs in line with the requirement of SARTSM(5), i.e. Railway Crossing sign W403 and a supplementary Stop (R1) sign have been implemented.
Considering that this level crossing is enroute the staff access to the mine additional safety measures could be considered, eg. safety boom operation in accordance with Chapter 7 (par. 7.2.5) of the South African Road Traffic Signs Manual (Signing for Railway Crossings). It would be advised that this crossing should be carefully monitored and incidents/accidents should be recorded to determine whether additional safety measures are required.
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9 ROAD PAVEMENT MANAGEMENT
9.1 CURRENT TRAFFIC LOADING
Traffic loading is measured in E80’s which is defined by the Guidelines for Provision of Engineering Services and Amenities in Residential Township Development (Amended 1995) as follows:
“The cumulative damaging effect of all individual axle loads is expressed as the number of equivalent 80 kN single axle loads (E80’s). This is the number of 80 kN single-axle loads that would cause the same damage to the pavement as the actual spectrum of axle loads.”
The impact of the light vehicles along the R30 is considered to be insignificant. The 24-hour 7- day average traffic volumes from Table 3.1 were used to determine the existing heavy vehicle loading. It was assumed that the average heavy vehicle is equal to 3 E80’s and the calculated current heavy vehicle traffic loading is given in Tables 7.1 (north of Jeanette mine) and 7.2 (south of Jeanette mine):
Table 7.1: Current Loading North of Jeanette Mine Heavy Vehicles Direction E80's per Year MESA* per Year per Day Northbound 167 182 865 0.183 Southbound 250 273 750 0.274 * Million Equivalent Standard Axles.
Table 7.2: Current Loading South of Jeanette Mine Heavy Vehicles Direction E80's per Year MESA* per Year per Day Northbound 364 398 580 0.399 Southbound 753 824 535 0.825 * Million Equivalent Standard Axles.
9.2 ADDITIONAL LOADING ON THE R30
The cumulative effect of the existing and additional traffic loading from Jeanette mine along the R30 is analysed over the estimated life of the mine.
The number of trucks per annum as described in Chapter 4 is summarised in Table 7.3 below. It was assumed that one empty truck would return from Jeanette mine for every loaded truck that departs from the mine and vice versa.
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Table 7.3: Annual Truck Trip Generation by Jeanette Mine
To/From Total North- South- Trip Loaded/ Project Phase Jeanette Number east west Purpose Empty Mine of Trips (30%) (70%) Materials Loaded 1 320 396 924 To Waste Empty 1 320 396 924 Construction Total 2 640 792 1 848 Only Materials Empty 1 320 396 924 From Waste Loaded 1 320 396 924 Total 2 640 792 1 848 Materials Loaded 2 880 864 2 016 To Waste Empty 13 320 3 996 9 324 Rock Construction & Total 16 200 4 860 11 340 Operations Materials Empty 2 880 864 2 016 From Waste rock Loaded 13 320 3 996 9 324 Total 16 200 4 860 11 340 Materials Loaded 1 560 468 1 092 To Waste rock Empty 12 000 3 600 8 400 Operations Total 13 560 4 068 9 492 Only Materials Empty 1 560 468 1 092 From Waste rock Loaded 12 000 3 600 8 400 Total 13 560 4 068 9 492
Using the average E80’s for different heavy vehicle configurations provided in the THR16 manual (Traffic Loading for Pavement and Rehabilitation Design) and considering that the majority of the vehicles will be material transporters (3-axles) it was assumed that the loaded trucks would be equal to 2.6 E80’s and the empty trucks would be equal to 0.2 E80’s.
The annual additional traffic loading (E80’s) as a result of the Jeanette mine is summarized in Table 7.4 below.
Table 7.4: Annual E80 Traffic Loading as a result of Jeanette Mine
R30 North-east R30 South-west Project Phase To Mine From Mine To Mine From Mine Construction Only 1 109 1 109 2 587 2 587 Construction & 3 046 10 562 7 106 24 646 Operations Operations Only 1 937 9 454 4 519 22 058
It was assumed that the mine will operate at steady state production for 18 years, i.e. up to 2047. The cumulative pavement loading of the mine over the construction period and life of the mine is summarised in Table 7.5.
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Table 7.5: Cumulative Heavy Vehicle Loading from Jeanette Mine on the R30
Number R30 North-east R30 South-west Project Phase of years To Mine From Mine To Mine From Mine Construction Only 6 6 654 6 654 15 522 15 522 Construction & 4 12 184 42 248 28 424 98 584 Operations Operations Only 21 40 677 198 534 94 899 463 218 Total E80’s 31 59 515 247 436 138 845 577 324 Total MESA* 31 0.06 0.25 0.14 0.58
* Million Equivalent Standard Axles
9.3 ADDITIONAL LOADING ON S86
The heavy vehicle loading on the S86 as a result of Jeanette mine is summarised in Table 7.6 below.
Table 7.6: Cumulative Heavy Vehicle Loading from Jeanette Mine on the S86
Number Project Phase To Mine From Mine of years
Construction Only 6 22 176 22 176 Construction & 4 40 608 140 832 Operations Operations Only 21 129 120 630 240 Total E80’s 31 191 904 793 248 Total MESA* 31 0.19 0.79
* Million Equivalent Standard Axles 9.4 SUGGESTED MEASURES
The additional loading on the R30 due to the proposed mine is very low compared to the existing heavy vehicle loading, i.e. the cumulative impact of the mine over its entire life span is expected to be less than the annual impact of the current traffic on the R30. This, together with the observed good condition of the R30, do not require any mitigation measures with respect to the proposed mine.
Similarly the heavy vehicle loading on the S86 is expected to be relatively low and the gravel road may be adequate to accommodate this traffic. Further investigation in terms of the stability of this road is suggested to determine the bearing capacity of the road and to make recommendations in terms of the required structure of the road, taking the estimated loading in Table 7.6 into account.
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10 INTERESTED AND AFFECTED PARTIES
10.1 ISSUES RAISED BY IAP’S
Public consultation does not form part of the scope of the traffic impact study, however a public consultation process is undertaken as part of the EIA and EMP process. Comments from interested and affected parties relating to roads and traffic received to date are tabulated below with a brief response from the Traffic Specialist.
Table 8.1: IAP Comments Comment Date comment Comment Response raised by was raised
Uys van Heerden 25 June 2015 With the condition the The additional heavy at the public road is currently in, it vehicle traffic is expected scoping meeting won’t be able to handle to be low and to have a the additional traffic, minimal impact on the especially with big trucks R30. Further that will use the roads. investigation into the stability of the S86 (gravel road) is recommended.
Willem Naude, 26 June 2015 The province has two A site development plan Odendaalsrus at the public roads on either side of needs to be submitted to Community scoping meeting the mine; the R30 to the the relevant local west and gravel to the authority for approval. east. Both roads have They will circulate it to building restrictions to the relevant provincial the development and authorities or request connecting roads. The submissions to these provincial department of departments for roads need to be comments and approval. consulted in this regard.
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11 CONCLUSIONS & RECOMMENDATIONS
11.1 CONCLUSIONS
In view of the findings in this assessment, the following conclusions may be drawn:
(i) The critical intersections will still operate at acceptable levels of service during the 2027 AM and PM peak hours with the combined impact of construction and operational staff traffic.
(ii) The heavy vehicle impact of the mine will be relatively low.
(iii) The shoulder sight distance to the north-east at Intersection M3 from the S86 approach is currently insufficient for the worst-case design vehicle (SU+T).
(iv) The road surface of the affected section of the R30 was observed to be in a good condition.
11.2 RECOMMENDATIONS
Taking the above conclusions into account the proposed Jeanette mine can be supported from a traffic perspective, subject to the following recommendations:
(i) The speed limit on the R30 in advance of the T-junction with the S86 should be reduced from 100km/h to 60km/h, as discussed in Section 6.1.
(ii) SARTSM compliant warning signs W107 and W108, combined with suplementary heavy vehicle warning plates (IN 11.569) should be erected along the R30 on either side of the T- junction with the S86, as discussed in Section 6.2.
(iii) Based on the assumption that the mine access will be controlled by a manually operated boom, the access to the mine should have two inbound lanes with queue storage length of 75m each.
(iv) Further investigation into the bearing capacity of the S86 is required to confirm if the existing gravel road is suitable for the estimated heavy vehicle loading.
(v) The railway level crossing on the S86/Haupfleish Street should be monitored for incidents/accidents and increased safety/warning measures should be considered if this crossing proves to be a safety hazard.
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12 REFERENCES
1. Manual for Traffic Impact Studies, Report RR93/635, Department of Transport, October 1995
2. TRH 17, Geometric Design for Rural Roads, CSIR, Pretoria, 1988
3. Taung Gold Jeanette Project Pre-Feasibility Study (Ref. 2013-023a), Minxcon Projects, 2014
4. Taung Gold Jeanette Project Execution Plan (Ref. 2013-023a), Minxcon Projects, July 2014
5. Southern African Development Community Road Traffic Signs Manual, 3rd Edition. National Department of Transport, 1998, South Africa. 6. National Environmental Management Act, 1998 (Act No. 107 of 1998). Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations, 2014, Appendix 6.
7. South African Road Classification and Access Management Manual (TRH 26), Version 1.0, August 2012. Committee of Transport Officials (COTO).
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13 APPENDICES
Appendix A Figures
Appendix B Photographs
Appendix C Traffic Data
Appendix D SIDRA Results
Appendix E NEMA Regulations (2014) Checklist
Appendix F Curriculum Vitae
Taung Gold Jeanette Project TIS WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff Synergistics (SLR group) Project No. 19520.R April 2016 Appendix A
FIGURES
Natal KwaZulu- Mpumalanga Limpopo Area Proposed MiningRight Gauteng Kilometers March2016 Welkom Free State Coord System: DMS Datum: WGS84, Lo27 Scale: 1 :74500 @A3 SLR Consulting (Africa) (Pty)Consulting SLR Ltd North West 0 1 2 P O 1596, Cramerview,Box P 2060, South Africa Tailings Dam and ReturnTailings Water Dam Complex Tel: +27 Tel: (11)+27 Fax: 467-0945 (11) 467-0978 ProposedMining Area Right RockWaste Dump ShaftComplex Plant Complex RawWaterDam Main Roads Gravel Roads Powerlines Railway line Sedibeng WaterPipeline Eskom Sub-Station 710.20006.00009 ! [ ±
Northern Cape TAUNGGOLD (FREESTATE) (PTY) LTD
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