The MEC for Roads and Transport in Limpopo, Ms Pinky Kekana, said the detour between Louis Trichardt and Thohoyandou will hopefully soon be a thing of the past. This was during the official handing over of the reconstruction project of the Lutanandwa Bridge to a contractor at Levubu last Wednesday.

The Lutanandwa Bridge (bridge No. 1288 on road P98/1) that links Louis Trichardt and Thohoyandou, collapsed two years ago. This meant that motorists had to use a detour, which added an extra 12 kilometres to their journey. This also resulted in heavy traffic volumes through the Levubu farm area, which caused the road there to deteriorate.

MEC Kekana said that her department had put aside R28,5 million to reconstruct the bridge. “The reconstruction of this bridge will once again contribute to the economic activities in the Vhembe District by linking the villages and towns and reducing travelled distances among business communities,” she said.

She added that the new bridge that was to be built would be capable of handling the relevant traffic volumes and withstand floods.

Kekana said the contract made provision for the employment of local labourers. She also outlined that her department had budgeted R1.8m for labour utilisation during the contract.

“The appointed contractor is also required to empower the local Small Medium and Micro Entrepreneurs (SMMEs), by giving them sub-contracts on this project. The contractual amount that has been put aside for the employment of SMMEs as sub-contractors is R3.6 million. The road which is being used as a detour through the farms is also going to be fixed. I am quite aware of the damaged bridge at Fondwe in Nzhelele leading to the Sibasa road and it is also going to be fixed,” said Kekana.

A lot of people were injured when the bridge collapsed on November 20, 2008.

According to Mr Paul Olivier, an engineer from SSI Consulting Engineers, which has been appointed at the project, the reconstruction of the new bridge is expected to be finished in eight months. The mayor of Makhado Municipality, Cllr Mavhungu Luruli, showed appreciation for the patience shown by the motorists who have been very cooperative during the process.

The department also promised to service all old bridges in the Vhembe District as the Zindi bridge in Thohoyandou is also suspected to have structural problems.