PDM tears into Erongo road quality
The Popular Democratic Movement (PDM) has lambasted the state of the Erongo Regions’ road infrastructure, saying it has become a thorn in the flesh of motorists in the region.
The party’s Erongo coordinator Roger Nautoro called the road infrastructure “deplorable”, adding that driving to villages and settlements in the region has become nearly impossible.
“Our roads are rough, rocky, corrugated and criss-crossed by mini rivers, making them difficult to cross in rainy seasons,” he said.
According to him, in the past four years, 1 119 road crashes were recorded in Erongo. “These crashes ultimately resulted in more than 1 700 injuries and 125 fatalities.”
Nautoro mentioned several roads in the region, including the Swakopmund-Henties Bay-Kamanjab road project “which was birthed in 2015 has not yet reached an advantageous level of completion after seven years”; the Karibib-Otjimbingwe road link which is “in a very bad state”, and the Wilhelmstal-Omaruru link.
“Travellers from Omaruru to Okahandja and/or Windhoek are forced to drive an extra 84 kilometres through Karibib while the Wilhelmstal-Omaruru link remains untarred,” Nautoro said.
Economic significance
“The very busy Omaruru-Uis link is an eyesore; the incomplete MR 44 Walvis was affected a budget of N$237 million for the 2022/2023 financial year; the tourist-attracting Spitzkoppe-Henties Bay link is another important road needing attention,” he added.
Nautoro said he hoped government would prioritise its spending on roads in that region through the Roads Authority (RA).
“We call on the Namibian government through the RA to prioritise the tarring of roads in the Erongo Region.
“These roads bear an economic significance to the larger population in this region,” he said.
The party’s Erongo coordinator Roger Nautoro called the road infrastructure “deplorable”, adding that driving to villages and settlements in the region has become nearly impossible.
“Our roads are rough, rocky, corrugated and criss-crossed by mini rivers, making them difficult to cross in rainy seasons,” he said.
According to him, in the past four years, 1 119 road crashes were recorded in Erongo. “These crashes ultimately resulted in more than 1 700 injuries and 125 fatalities.”
Nautoro mentioned several roads in the region, including the Swakopmund-Henties Bay-Kamanjab road project “which was birthed in 2015 has not yet reached an advantageous level of completion after seven years”; the Karibib-Otjimbingwe road link which is “in a very bad state”, and the Wilhelmstal-Omaruru link.
“Travellers from Omaruru to Okahandja and/or Windhoek are forced to drive an extra 84 kilometres through Karibib while the Wilhelmstal-Omaruru link remains untarred,” Nautoro said.
Economic significance
“The very busy Omaruru-Uis link is an eyesore; the incomplete MR 44 Walvis was affected a budget of N$237 million for the 2022/2023 financial year; the tourist-attracting Spitzkoppe-Henties Bay link is another important road needing attention,” he added.
Nautoro said he hoped government would prioritise its spending on roads in that region through the Roads Authority (RA).
“We call on the Namibian government through the RA to prioritise the tarring of roads in the Erongo Region.
“These roads bear an economic significance to the larger population in this region,” he said.
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