GEORGE NEWS - Motorists will have noticed the construction activity in the vicinity of the Pacaltsdorp bridge over the N2 to establish a site office for the engineering and construction teams who will be working on the widening of the bridge as announced by the George Municipality recently.

The R94-million project, which started on Monday, will last about 21 months and may have a slight impact on the normal flow of traffic over the bridge as well as on the N2. The George Herald, in collaboration with the engineering team, will be publishing regular updates on the project and what motorists can expect in terms of traffic delays.

The two-lane bridge will be widened to four lanes to improve traffic flow to and from Pacaltsdorp as well as other future developments towards this area.

It will be executed in two phases, with phase one consisting of widening the bridge on the Pacaltsdorp side. This phase started on Monday. Traffic on the northern half of the N2 will be diverted so that there will be no traffic on the southern side of the N2 for the duration of this phase.

During phase two, the widening of the bridge on the George side will follow when traffic will be diverted to the southern lanes of the N2.

There will also be delays on the bridge from time to time as traffic will be diverted to narrowed lanes. "We will try to keep these delays to a minimum and have them outside of peak times. We would appreciate the public's cooperation and ask them to please be patient during these delays," says Nico Liebenberg, project engineer of the George Municipality.

The project also comprises the widening of Beach Road and York Street to four lanes from the Panther Drive intersection to the Discovery/PW Botha Boulevard intersection. Additional turning lanes will also be added at both off-ramps to and from the N2 on the Mossel Bay side of the bridge.

"Other work includes construction of new sidewalks and traffic median islands, the relocation of traffic signals, street lighting and the replacement of road signs and road markings," says Liebenberg.

A pedestrian crossing will also be built on the eastern side of the existing bridge.

For queries regarding traffic diversions and other complaints, phone construction traffic safety officer Dean Douw on 083 380 1341.


At the temporary site office premises, from left: Anton Swanepoel, Mondi Tyalimpi (assistant resident engineer: Smec SA), Basil Steyn (professional engineer: Smec SA) and Nico Liebenberg (project engineer: George Municipality).

ARTICLE AND PHOTOS: ALIDA DE BEER, GEORGE HERALD JOURNALIST

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