COVER STORY
Ugrading key routes – the Kranspoort Pass KPMM Roads and Earthworks’ Cat 140K grader fleet forms the backbone of the layer works programmes on a range of projects now under way nationally, a key one being on the Middelburg to Loskopdam road in Mpumalanga.
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USTAINED PUBLIC-SECTOR investment in South Africa’s road infrastructure remains buoyant going into 2016, with national and provincial projects under way that will relieve constraints, providing a positive stimulus for medium- and longer-term socioeconomic growth. A prime example is the rehabilitation of the N11 (Section 10) from Middelburg to Loskopdam (km 23.5 to km 53.4), an approximately R353 million project being undertaken by Gauteng-based company KPMM Roads and Earthworks (KPMM). Central to this
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IMIESA April 2016
project is the widening of the scenic Kranspoort Pass. This is a South African National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) project. The route is a strategically important one as it links Middelburg with other key mining centres like Witbank and Burgersfort, and traditionally carries a high volume of commercial and abnormal truck traffic.
Project details Work commenced in January 2015, with KPMM estimating completion in January 2017. As Kevin Padayachee, operational director, KPMM, explains, the scope of works is multifaceted and requires precise project planning and execution. KPMM Roads and Earthworks is 9CE accredited in accordance with the Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) grading system. “The existing roadway is being upgraded to include two 3.7 m lanes and a 2.5 m surfaced shoulder on each side, giving a surfaced road width of 12.4 m,” says Padayachee.
The major works portion entails the establishment of an extra lane through Kranspoort Pass, which requires extensive blasting to create the new cuttings. “The intention of the engineering design is to ‘soften’ the pass to create a safer travel experience by removing negative slopes.” Also included is the installation of two truck arrestor beds on specified sections. There will be four lanes (two north- and southbound, respectively) through the pass over an approximate distance of 5 km. Four bridges along the way will be widened to accommodate the new road dimensions, while the Keeroms River bridge (at km 6.54) is being completely demolished and replaced with a three-span structure that will have new approaches on both sides. A temporary bypass accommodates travellers. Pedestrians will also be served by a new walkway installation at Doornkop (between km 34 and km 38). Some 28 km of subsoil drainage will also be installed, plus deck width extensions and maintenance to nine in situ culverts. Slope protection of the cut faces entails extensive soil anchoring and guniting, rockfall curtains and gabion retaining walls. All these phases, including the blasting, are being carried out by specialist subcontractors under the construction management of KPMM as the main contractor.