Planning a trip that takes you on the N2 near Caledon?

It might be a bit tricky.

If you’ve been out that way recently, you probably faced the inevitable ‘stop-and-go’, designed to turn every cross country trip into an encounter with someone like the guy Seth saw last time he took a road trip.

From the ciggie to the leftover braai meat and mandatory stretch, the stop-and-go ritual is real.

Back to the N2. The highway upgrade that’s been happening over the last while has been suspended along with three others across South Africa, reports Business Insider.

Four highway projects – with a total value of almost R2.3 billion – are in limbo after Group Five and Basil Read hit a wall.

The 45-year-old Group Five filed for bankruptcy protection this month, following Basil Read, which suffered the same fate last year.

The construction sector has been hit hard by the sharp fall in government infrastructure projects and the weak state of the SA economy.

Both Group Five and Basil Read won large tenders from Sanral to upgrade highways in Limpopo, the Eastern Cape and the Western Cape.

Sanral told Business Insider that it now has to work with the contractors’ insurers to find “another suitably qualified and experienced contractor who would complete the works”. Alternatively, Sanral will to call for formal tenders for the completion of the outstanding work.

The tender process will take at least six months, so get ready for at least a year, and probably more, of crappy roads.

The N2 Caledon to Riviersondered is only 33% completed. They still needed to add passing lanes and paved shoulders to the road.

Construction started in 2017.

The N1 Polokwane Bypass is 66% complete with work starting in 2015.

Basil Read won a R741.5 million tender to upgrade 14.9 km of the N1 on the eastern ring-road of Polokwane.

The upgrade included additional carriageways and construction of interchanges.

The N1 Musina Bypass is 60% complete. Basil Read won a R487 million contract to construct eight kilometres of the new N1 ring road for Musina, along with interchanges.

Finally, the R61 Mthatha Upgrade wins the prize for closest to completion at 72%.

This R504 million project involves upgrading 27 km of the R61 at Mthatha, and also includes pavement shoulders.

Basil Read started work on this project in 2015, which was supposed to span 40 months.

All in all, not great news for motorists who need to use these roads on the regular.

Drive safely out there.

[source:businessinsider]