Mintirho Ya Vulavula

Following the rehabilitation and upgrading of road D4166 from gravel to tar, Mmileng, the official quarterly magazine of Roads Agency Limpopo (RAL), recently visited Ga-Riba and the nearby villages in the FetakgomoTubatse Local Municipality to gather first-hand feedback from the road users on the benefits of the new upgrades. Read full story about the road upgrades on page 30.

As a small business owner dealing with regular deliveries, the road upgrade has positively impacted my business. Due to the upgrade, my firewood business is thriving; I can now deliver at least six loads daily to nearby communities. This is something that was impossible to achieve before the upgrade since we could only deliver one or two loads per day.

This road was unworthy, it was riddled with big holes and bumps which reduced the lifespan of our cars, but since the upgrade, there is significant developmental progress and as residents, it shows that there is something that we are benefiting from.

Vincent Marebane (Small business owner) from Ga-Riba

Manabeng Riba (road user) from Ga-Riba

Scan the QR Code to watch this vox pop.

Before the road was tarred, the surface was in a bad condition, making it difficult to access the Ga-Riba village. The new road has made travelling time from Riba Cross to Ga-Riba shorter. Holes and bumps made the road unsafe and uncomfortable to an extent that upon arrival at work, one would rest first before they could commence working. Before the new tar road was constructed, it was difficult to travel on the old road, thereby making transport inaccessible. We were compelled to travel by ordinary vans to get to Ga-Riba because people with small cars were not willing to transport us, citing possible tyre punctures. Due to the new tar road upgrade, the road is both accessible and comfortable to travel in Avanzas.

California Molapo, Nurse (Ga-Riba Clinic) from Maandagshoek Ivy Fuze, Teacher (Ntepane Primary School, Ga-Riba) lodging at Praktiseer