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Zimbabwean roads are in a deplorable state with the incessant rains during this rainy season worsening the situation for both tarred and gravel roads.Officials from the country’s provinces bemoaned the poor state of roads saying there was need to address the problem as a matter of urgency as some of the roads had become impassible. Below are reports of the country’s roads situation from our bureaus in various provinces.

INNOCENT RUWENDE reporting from Harare said at least 77 percent of Harare’s roads require urgent attention, with Harare Mayor Bernard Manyenyeni saying no road was safe above 60km per hour.

The city has about 4 500km of tarred roads, with a significant proportion of the network in a woeful condition, due to lack of maintenance, coupled with a sharp increase in the number of cars in Harare.

Director of Works Engineer Phillip Pfukwa said 3 500km required rehabilitation and the city was carrying out maintenance programmes.

“Our roads have been declared a disaster. We expect funds from Government to carry out rehabilitation but as a city, we are carrying out maintenance work using the $1,2 million we got from the Zimbabwe National Road Administration (Zinara),” he said.

He said the city had a moving target and will repair more roads depending on revenue accruing to council.

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In Manicaland, ABEL ZHAKATA reports that roads are in a deplorable state and local authorities are busy quantifying the extent of the damage as well as coming up with figures to repair them.

Acting provincial administrator Mr Edgars Seenza said each local authority would come up with a detailed account of their respective road networks when they hold their quarterly provincial development committee meeting next month.

“Our roads are in a bad state because of incessant rains, which have caused flooding in some areas,” said Mr Seenza.

“Some bridges were washed away and they need to be repaired fast. As we speak, there are some areas that have become virtually inaccessible. We can come up with figures and good presentations concerning the state of our roads, but what is lacking is adequate funding.

“Zinara is doing something, but the funds are too little considering the magnitude of the damage done on the roads. We also have the problem of some local authorities who are failing to get funds from Zinara because they cannot account for previous disbursements.”

Mr Seenza said the poor road network had adversely affected economic activities in the province.

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GEORGE MAPONGA in Masvingo reports that most roads in both urban and rural areas across Masvingo are in a state of disrepair with rural district councils calling on Government to order Zinara to substantially increase its monetary allocations and avert total collapse of the entire road network system.

Major tarred roads that are fast deteriorating and plagued by potholes include Chivi-Mhandamabwe, Masvingo-Chaka, Gutu-Chatsworth, Masvingo-Rutenga, Chiredzi-Zaka, Stop Over-Bondolfi roads. The Masvingo-Mashava, Roy-Mpandawana and Chiredzi-Ngundu roads were still in good shape but slowly being damaged by increasing potholes.

Among gravel roads, the worst affected include Bikita Minerals-Chiwara,

Nyika-Chiremwaremwa, Chiredzi-Chikombedzi, Masvingo-Nyajena roads where gravel was washed away by heavy rains reducing them to earth roads.

Masvingo Rural District Council chief executive Mr Martin Mubviro said rural councils were failing to repair roads owing to lack of funds.

“We lack the financial wherewithal to repair the roads and the allocations we get from Zinara are a mockery. Our suggestion would be for Zinara to purchase road-making equipment such as tippers and graders for distribution to local authorities for routine road maintenance instead of giving a local authority, say, US$37 000, which is a drop in the ocean,” said Mr Mubviro.

Chivi Rural District Council chairperson Councillor Killer Zivhu said rural councils would seek an appointment with President Mugabe to highlight to him the precarious state of rural roads in the wake of the heavy rains that have been falling.

“We want to seek audience with President Mugabe because, besides the fact that we get meagre allocations from Zinara not enough to rehabilitate 100 metres of road, our traditional sources of revenue have dried up. We no longer have a strong revenue collection base like before,” he said.

“Zinara gives a rural council that manages over 500km of road just US$39 000. What will that money do?”

Cllr Zivhu, who is also president of the Association of Rural District Councils of Zimbabwe, said the revenue base for rural councils shrunk further after Government, through the Ministry of Lands and Rural Resettlement, took over the collection of levies in farming areas.

He said councils were also elbowed out from even licensing business operators at growth points and service centres in their areas.

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In Bulawayo VUSUMUZI DUBE says 70 percent of the road network is dilapidated, with the local authority requiring about $700 million to fix and upgrade the roads.

Bulawayo City Council senior public relations officer Mrs Nesisa Mpofu said that of the city’s total road network of about 2 100km, 70 percent was in poor condition, which translates to 1 470km.

“Most of the roads have outlived their lifespan. The service life of our roads (flexible pavements) ranges from 15 years for local streets, to 20 years major roads. The determination of design life is a factor of materials used, environmental conditions and traffic loading.

“To date, 70 percent of the total network is in poor condition. More than 50 percent of the roads in poor condition require immediate rehabilitation. It is approximated that $690 million is required to bring the roads to good or better condition with $69 million required per year according to our Road Condition Survey,” she said.

Mrs Mpofu said they would engage and lobby Government for more funding through Zinara.

“In the Investment Prospectus recently published, road development and rehabilitation is also included. Industry is invited to propose ideas and partner with council in improving the condition of the road network.

This year, Mrs Mpofu revealed that they were set to rehabilitate 53,9km of roads through the following periodic maintenance activities; 3,1km reconstruction, 16,1 km reseals,4,7km overlays and 30km regravelling.

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LEONARD NCUBE in Matabeleland North says that the majority of roads were badly damaged by rains and local authorities are pinning their hopes on funding from Zinara.

Government recently started patching potholes on the badly damaged Bulawayo-Victoria Falls highway where stretches between Insuza and Mbembesi River, Lupane and Cross Jotsholo, Halfway and Gwayi River as well as Hwange-Lubangwe were now impassable because of potholes.

So far the Hwange-Lubangwe stretch has been patched while work is underway on the other areas.

The road network in Hwange district, especially the road connecting the coal mining town to Deka on the Zambezi River has been badly damaged by the rains.

In Victoria Falls, Town Clerk Mr Ronnie Dube said rehabilitation of roads was the municipality’s top priority in its capital projects this year as the road network was in bad state.

There have been concerns about the state of roads and drainage system in suburbs such as Mkhosana and Aerodrome, where some streets are impassable due to potholes and poor drainage.

In Bubi district, 40 percent of the 900km road network is untrafficable, said District Engineer Washington Lunga.

“We have a road network of 900km and 40 percent of it is in a totally bad state. Our major source of funding is Zinara who are going to be surfacing two kilometres of tarred road while we are going to rehabilitate 250km of gravel road as a council,” said Eng Lunga.

He said the council introduced a special fund to raise money for the acquisition of a plant.

In Binga, the main road that connects the district to Hwange via Dete was badly damaged with the 60km stretch between Binga and Kamativi, Binga-Siabua-Mujeri and Binga-Tyunga the worst affected, chief executive Mr Joshua Muzamba said.

He said the council had already engaged a contractor to rehabilitate some of the roads at a cost of $300 000.

“There is an effort by the ministry through Zinara to patch some potholes but more needs to be done. Rural feeder roads need grading and we appreciate funding from Zinara for fuel towards that.

“The council has also engaged a contractor to tar 2,5km within Binga town at a cost of $300 000 funded by Zinara,” said Mr Muzamba.

In Lupane, only four-wheel-drive vehicles can travel on Fighting Road linking the provincial capital to Nkayi and Kwekwe.

The road, if rehabilitated, can shorten the distance between Victoria Falls and Harare.

Lupane East MP Sithembile Gumbo said motorists were now using the Jotsholo route from areas such as Daluka owing to damaged roads and a flooded Shangani Bridge.

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THUPEYO MULEYA reports that the Beitbridge to Harare and Bulawayo highways, Zimbabwe’s main economic arteries, are in an advanced state of disrepair while secondary roads used mainly for border patrols and outreach to the remote southern part of the country are in need of immediate attention.

The two highways are the backbone of regional trade with the bulk of goods and commodities in and out of SADC being shipped through Beitbridge to South Africa’s major ports.

They are also used by tourists visiting the country from south of the Limpopo River apart from thousands of cross-border traders.

Zimra statistics show that an average of 150 trucks in transit and another 300 local pass through Beitbridge Border Post daily.

Further, an average of 450 000 travellers, 21 000 trucks, 3 200 buses and 30 000 private cars use these roads per month

The stretch between Runde River, Rutenga and Bubi River along the Beitbridge- Harare road has become riddled with huge potholes.

Along the Beitbridge-Bulawayo road, the stretch between the border and Makhado is the worst with a bumpy surface and numerous potholes.

The Lutumba-Tshikwakwala road which links Beitbridge and Chiredzi district and the Great Limpopo Trans-frontier Conservation area was in bad shape.

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WALTER NYAMUKONDIWA reports that several roads and bridges have been damaged with the incessant rains leaving no room for repairs in Mashonaland West.

Tarred roads especially the Harare-Chirundu road are riddled with potholes with manpower from the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructural Development’s department of roads failing to cope.

Several accidents have been reported as motorists try to manoeuvre their way past potholes concentrated on portions of the road and end up encroaching onto oncoming traffic.

Most dirt roads connecting rural communities have become muddy with several vehicles being stuck including trucks bringing inputs and food relief.

A bridge in the Zumbara area of Makonde district was undercut and villagers have mobilised stones to ensure that vehicles can pass through.

Trucks are being stuck in mud in the Mafindifindi area of Mamina in Mhondoro as the persistent rains leave the roads sticky and wet with no time to absorb water and dry off.

In Kariba district’s Gache Gache area, passengers are being dropped off several kilometres from the fishing camps as buses cannot proceed because the area is swampy.

A bridge was swept away in the Chundu area of Hurungwe and the community is now mobilising stones under the food for work programme.

Chegutu Rural District Council chief executive Mr Dan Zvobgo said almost all roads in the district needed attention adding that they were mostly responding to serious cases.

“Because of resource constraints, we are currently responding to areas where communication has been cut off to ensure that they are back on stream with the rest of the world,” said Mr Zvobgo.