New Warwick Flyover: Major Road Closures.

Story Written By Gugu Blose

Major road closures will take place from Monday, when work on the R250-million Warwick Triangle Viaduct project picks up pace.

The project aims to solve one of Durban’s biggest traffic congestion headaches. But until work is completed in December 2009, motorists have been warned to expect increased congestion, detours and other disruptions. The flyover will carry traffic travelling into the city on the Western Freeway directly onto Johannes Nkosi (Alice) Street, bypassing the heavily congested Warwick area. The flyover will be finished just in time for the2010 Soccer World Cup, the benefits to motorists and pedestrians will extend well beyond 2010, said Roy Gooden, Deputy Head of the City’s Road Provision Department.

“The flyover will mean more efficient and safer travel. “We will be able to significantly reduce traffic congestion and the number of accidents in the area.” Preliminary work began in March, but the scale of the next phase of the development is far larger than what has been seen so far, Gooden warned.
“Construction will cause some disruptions and people will have to use alternative routes until work is completed.” Traffic will be re-routed from Old Dutch Road onto Centenary Road, Carlisle Road and Cross Street, before rejoining Johannes Nkosi Street. “These alternative routes are not cast in stone. We will monitor the situation regularly and make the necessary adjustments to ensure that disruption to motorists is minimised,” said Gooden.

The Engineering Department is liaising with Metro Police to ensure that sufficient personnel are deployed on these routes to assist traffic flow. Gooden urged motorists to drive carefully and to be patient during the construction period. “We also appeal to motorists to start thinking of alternative routes and factor the extra travel time into their journeys”.

blosegugu@durban.gov.za