The eThekwini Municipality will need an additional R22 million to complete roadworks on the busy Solomon Mahlangu Drive-M7. 

The municipality has notified councillors, at a recent council meeting, that there was a need for a contract amendment for the Solomon Mahlangu (M7) contract, which spans from the N2 Solomon Intersection to Wakesleigh and Vusi Mzimela Road. The contract, after being revised, is estimated to now cost R88.6 million.

According to the report presented, the contractor was appointed on June 8, 2021, to widen the existing eastbound carriageway of Solomon Mahlangu by providing an additional lane.

However, in September 2021, the South African National Roads Agency SOC Limited (SANRAL) informed the municipality of its intention to upgrade the existing N2/M7 interchange, similar to the upgraded Umgeni Interchange on the N2 Freeway. Little detail was provided on this upgrade, nor was any artist’s impression of how the new interchange could look. 

The SANRAL upgrade includes two new lanes to merge into the existing Solomon Mahlangu Drive carriageway. The report stated that this then resulted in additional work for the municipality, as a need existed to construct a mechanically stabilised earth wall along the eastbound carriageway of Solomon Mahlangu Drive to accommodate this new off-ramp.

According to the municipality, amendments to the contract were motivated by 

• The project has been affected by localised floods, causing damage to the work already under way.

• The increased rainfall resulted in groundwater flow into the excavated area embankment of the eastern carriageway, causing a slope failure; thus, emergency repairs were undertaken to provide stability.

• Specialist lateral support work to the embankment is also required to maintain stability of the existing embankment and for the construction to proceed more safely, with this operation resulting in additional costs and extending the duration of the project.

• Challenges encountered during the construction of the foundation of the Mechanically Stabilised Earth Wall, where, upon excavation, sections of bedrock were discovered along the length of the wall, thus necessitating a redesign of the concrete base dimensions to suit the existing site conditions.

The roadworks’ additional funding also comes at a time when SANRAL is improving the N3 and N2 road corridors, which are expected to take another eight years to complete, depending on funding availability.

The upgrade of the N2 focuses on a 55km length, from the Lovu River on the South Coast to Umdloti on the North Coast, while the N3 upgrade focuses on a 79.3km section from Durban to Pietermaritzburg.

On the N2, upgrades are expected at the Isipingo Interchange, Adams Road interchange, and Higginson Highway interchange.   

zainul.dawood@inl.co.za

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