Plattekloof Road has been upgraded into a dual carriageway with R20 million to spare, says the City of Cape Town.
The City’s Transport and Urban Development Authority, together with the Richmond Park Development Company, completed the upgrade in Bothasig recently to ease traffic congestion.
Initially estimated at R100 million, the costs for the two-year project were reduced to R80 million.
The dualling project, which took two years to complete, began in April 2016 and was completed last month.
In a statement, the City said it had budgeted about R100 million for the project, but it had been finished for R20 million less than that, as a contingency budget had gone unused.
“I am very pleased that we have finally completed the construction work of this very important artery which goes all the way from the N7 freeway in the west to the N1 freeway in the east,” said transport and urban development Mayco member, Brett Herron.
“The new dual carriageway provides motorists with much-needed relief by alleviating traffic in this area. Also, with the provision of safer sidewalks for pedestrians, and room within the shoulders of the road for cyclists, the safety of all road users has been improved.”
The project was one of the conditions for the approval for the new Richmond Business Park development between the N7 and De Grendel.
The roadworks started with the building of the new carriageway south of Plattekloof Road followed by the refurbishment of the existing Plattekloof Road.
The intersections with Vryburger Avenue, Bosmansdam Road and Welgemeend Street were also upgraded to suit the new road network and to ensure road safety of those turning into and out of the dual carriageway.
The project also included new pavements next to the existing road and along the new carriageway. Furthermore, the road was widened with shoulders to enable cyclists to ride in a safe environment.
“A huge benefit to taxpayers and all residents is that the project has been completed hugely under budget and within the set time frames. These are tremendous accomplishments given that most infrastructure projects are usually delayed by unforeseen circumstances or challenges,” said Mr Herron.
