Concrete way out for Zim roads Potholes along Willowvale Road in Harare
Potholes along Willowvale Road in Harare

Potholes along Willowvale Road in Harare

Talent Gore: Features Writer

Roads play a critical role in the socio-economic development of any nation and durability is important. Zimbabwe’s road network is in a deplorable state, especially in urban areas. Roads in the capital city, Harare, are littered with potholes, which have become a nightmare to motorists. The state of affairs applies to other cities and towns.

Incessant rains have worsened the roads situation with observers calling upon authorities to come up with lasting solutions to fix the road network.

Council now strongly feels that concrete roads are the solution as they are stronger than those made using bitumen. Analysts concur that the use of concrete to make the roads could be Zimbabwe’s panacea for potholes.

Almost all roads in Zimbabwe’s urban and rural areas need urgent attention.

Most of the country’s roads are surfaced using asphalt, popularly known as bitumen or tar, which has proved to be failing to last more than 10 years.

Infrastructure consultancy engineer Billy Mukasa said the viability of concrete pavements should be looked at particularly now that the country’s manufacturing sector produces cement more than average national needs.

“Concrete pavements have been found to be durable and last longer than bituminous roads,” he said. “The time has come for Zimbabwe to step up the use of concrete for roads especially now that the country has increased its potential to produce cement at lower prices and even exporting to other countries.”

He added that concrete roads were durable with a life span of more than 40 years and did not require frequent repair or patching work like bitumen roads.

“Besides, advancements in concrete technology have reduced the cost of concrete paving while improving performance greatly,” he said.

“For instance, the average lifespan of concrete pavements is 27,5 years before repair, while asphalt pavements have an average life span of only 15,5 years before repair.

“Looking from a Zimbabwean context, the materials required for concrete roads are locally available and therefore tend to be a cheaper option comparing to bitumen roads wherein its material is imported.”

He added that concrete roads were by nature resistant to extreme weather conditions and to some extent did not get affected by leaking oils from vehicles.

“Unlike asphalt roads, concrete roads do not get damaged by the leaking oils from the vehicles or by the extreme weather conditions like excess rain or extreme heat,” he said.

Mr Mukasa said although concrete roads were the way to go, paving costs were a little higher compared to asphalt paving.

“In addition the paving cost of the concrete road is a bit expensive. Concrete roads are also not safe especially in rainy and winter seasons and vehicles with old tyres might slip or slide due to rain and snow.

“The main disadvantage of concrete roads is that in cases where the concrete road breaks or fractures, the whole concrete slab has to be replaced unlike when we are dealing with bitumen wherein you can do patching,” he explained.

The Harare City Council believes that the new road surfacing method would save money in the long run.

Council director of works, Engineer Phillip Pfukwa said the new concrete roads were more durable compared to traditional asphalt roads.

“The traditional way of repairing roads is using asphalt roads which is well documented and is used in most countries in the world. Concrete roads are a relatively new development but they are more resistant to wear and tire factors,” Eng Pfukwa said.

Another dimension the concrete roads bring is their resistance to harsh conditions.

“They have been used in very wet countries and places that are marshy. Their durability in those conditions show that they can work well in Zimbabwe,” he said.

Roads tend to falter when there is too much traffic and the concrete surfaces would play a part in reducing the damage.

“Roads surfaces tend to wear quickly when there is turning traffic and concrete roads surfaces will reduce the damage. This is why service stations use concrete surfaces on their premises, it can sustain the pressure,” said Eng Pfukwa.

It seems the concrete roads are the best reprieve for the cash strapped council as they do not require closely knitted maintenance operations.

“Normal asphalt roads depending on the use and abuse, need to be maintained after every three years. The maintenance intervals get shorter as the time progresses.

Concrete roads need maintenance once every 10-15 years, which is cheaper,” he said.

Acting Town Clerk Mrs Josephine Ncube said they were moving to concrete roads. She said they will start with Arcturus Road before spreading to other areas.

“We will be introducing our first concrete roads very soon. We are going to start with Arcturus Road and I believe we have the requisite skill in council,” she said.

“Concrete roads require low maintenance and the advantage we have is that we have capacity as there is a lot of cement readily available in the country as compared to bitumen which we are currently importing from South Africa at higher prices.”

Mrs Ncube added that concrete roads had a longer lifespan compared to asphalt roads.

“Research indicated that well-designed cement roads require little or no maintenance well beyond their 40-year design lives,” she said.

Major roads feeding into the city like Second Street Extension, Seke, Chiremba and Simon Mazorodze Roads are now littered with potholes. The Harare-Beitbridge road is in a sorry state, needing urgent dualisation as heavy traffic is a common sight on the highway.

Lack of funding has stalled the project for years.

The Zimbabwe National Roads Administration (Zinara) is pushing for the adoption of concrete cement as a possible alternative for asphalt to ensure longevity of the country’s road infrastructure that has deteriorated over the years.

Zinara’s board chairman, Mr Albert Mugabe, said concrete was a suitable alternative for asphalt and road planners should also look into other materials which could assist in stabilising the country’s 90 000 kilometre road network.

“While in Zimbabwe roads are predominantly asphalt, in other parts of the world other materials are being used to make pavements, for example concrete.

“I urge our engineers to look at the various materials at our disposal, which can become an alternative solution to our construction, just as concrete is an alternative to bitumen.

“If we could have companies who can come up with innovative ideas, we would be keen on adopting the ideas because constructing our roads with the strongest material is more prudent than trying to fix them — the cost will be high,” Mr Mugabe said.

He said rural roads should also be reinforced by concrete cement so as to avoid constant gravelling by the District Development Fund.

Mr Mugabe added that the estimated $5 billion required to rehabilitate the country’s roads was insufficient as the network was beyond its lifespan.

“There is this figure of $5 billion, but how is it substantiated? I’m of the view that the statement amount is less because basically our entire road network is beyond its life span,” he added.

A Harare based town planner Mr Shingai Kawadza said concrete pavements have been found to be durable and lasting longer than bituminous roads.

“The time has come when Zimbabwe should step up the use of concrete for roads especially now that the country has increased its potential to produce cement at lower prices and even exporting to other countries,” he said.

“Concrete roads are the future and the way to go. Although the cost may be high in the short run, it will be economical in the long term given the increasing capacity of cement companies in the country.”

He said there was justification to use such roads as most developed and some African countries have since migrated from asphalt roads which require constant maintenance.

“Most nations worldwide are replacing asphalt roads with concrete roads.

“A typical example is the 24km road which was constructed by Dangote Industries Limited in Lagos (Nigeria) and is considered to be one of the strongest roads in Lagos,” he said.

He added that other notable countries which have embraced concrete roads are Malawi, Ethiopia and South Africa.

“Globally, an interesting example is the road linking Hanover and Berlin in Germany which was built during the Adolf Hitler era and is still in good shape,” he said.

He lamented that the country’s dilapidated roads have become death traps, while the economic cost to the nation was becoming too high.

Cement manufacturer Lafarge Holcim’s technical support engineer, Mr Rex Titus, said concrete roads would ensure a longer lifespan for the country’s roads.

“Although asphalt is relatively cheaper, most road contractors have failed to ensure a longer life span of the country’s roads due to use of cheap material and not ensuring quality from every stage of road construction, hence potholes have become a normal phenomenon in Zimbabwe,” he said.

He urged local contractors to stop replicating designs from other countries as these cannot be applied in the country.

“Zimbabwe needs to work at improving the life span of its roads.

“The best is to use the latest technology in road construction and adapt to the latest standards without copying designs from other countries which do not apply here due to climate, among other factors,” he said.

He also urged the industry to adopt soil stabilisation techniques, as most of the country’s roads were prone to bleeding because soils were not stable.

“Soil stabilisation is treating the soil to achieve the proper mechanical strength, using cement and lime to strengthen it so that the roads can be able to handle heavy traffic,” he explained.

Concrete cement has been used along the Mvuma-Chivhu road on an experimental basis, but road contractors have continued to use asphalt for the top layer surfacing.

Zimbabwe currently uses asphalt, a product of bitumen, for the top road surface, material that is prone to bleeding and quickly succumbs to heavy traffic if contractors do not engage in soil stabilisation techniques.

About 5 percent of the network is classified as primary roads and has some of the most trafficked arterials that link Zimbabwe with its neighbours. A portion of the Pan-Africa Highway passes through Zimbabwe.

This part of the road network plays a critical role in the movement of the country’s imports and exports as well as transit freight.

Some 14 percent of the network is classified as secondary roads that link the main economic centres within the country, enabling internal movement of people and goods.

The primary and secondary roads are collectively referred to as the trunk road system; they carry over 70 percent of the vehicular traffic. At least 70 percent of the network is made up of tertiary feeder and access roads that link rural areas to the secondary road network.

Failure to maintain these roads has a huge bearing on socio-economic development. It contributes to a country’s failure to achieve or surpass its potential.

 

Feedback: [email protected].

You Might Also Like

Comments

Take our Survey

We value your opinion! Take a moment to complete our survey