Farmers in the small town of Allanridge in the Free State are furious with government’s decision to close the R30 road while harvest season is in full swing.
The closure follows a visit by Premier Sefora Ntombela and members of her executive council on Wednesday (1 June) to conduct a site visit to the notorious road towards Bothaville. A short stretch of gravel road, without railing and flanked on either side by dam water, has reportedly caused dozens of fatalities in recent months.
“I was informed that nearly 30 people have lost their lives so far… We have taken a decision to close the road to prevent further loss of lives,” Ntombela said.
The leadership of the province is appealing to motorists to avoid the road and to make use of alternative routes.
Closure will cost farmers
But farmers will be affected. A producer in Allanridge, Rudi Jansen van Vuuren, tells Food For Mzansi that closing the road was a senseless move that will have a negative impact on the agricultural sector and economy of the area.
“Closing the R30 at this stage would be very bad timing as harvesting is currently being done. All farmers north of Allanridge would be cut off from Allanridge silo.
“Delivery to Odendaalsrus silo would be possible via the S86 but would be much further and more expensive because of fuel costs,” he explains about the extra 18 km of gravel road, adding that it will cost precious travelling time too.
Free State Agriculture commercial manager Jack Armour agrees that the road closure is a huge inconvenience and says that farmers were not consulted about it beforehand. He also does not believe that a bridge is the most cost-effective and safest solution which, police, roads and transport MEC William Bulwane said engineers have recommended as a permanent solution.
No time frame for the reopening of the road has been given, and a meeting has been called with the office of the premier officially about the consequences of closing the R30.
‘R34 fixed by 19 September’
The Free State government has recently come under more pressure from farmers and community members for the poor road infrastructure that was costing businesses in the area millions of rand.
A meeting between provincial government officials and FSA also did not result in solutions for fixing the province’s roads issues.
Vast kilometres of the province’s roads in rural and farming areas are in a dilapidated state and farmers have taken it upon themselves to fix it.
The MEC promised in the meantime to have the R34 fixed by 19 September 2022. “An appointed contractor will commence with phase two to rehabilitate the road. Phase one [to determine the scope of the necessary work] has already been completed. The project will cost R60 million,” he said.
ALSO READ: Road repairs: Farmers, NW govt sign official agreement
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