Question NW320 to the Minister of Transport
11 March 2022 - NW320
Lees, Mr RA to ask the Minister of Transport
(1)What are the details of the surveys conducted by (a) his department and (b) the SA National Roads Agency Limited on the state of roads in the Uthukela District Municipality from 1 October 2021 to 31 December 2021; (2) whether he will furnish Mr R A Lees with copies of the survey reports; if not, why not; if so, on what date?
Reply:
1. (a) The Department of Transport’s mandate relates to the monitoring of adherence to Committee of Transport Officials (COTO) requirements with regard to condition surveys performed by the SA National Roads Agency Limited (SANRAL) and the various Provincial Authorities. Therefore, the Department of Transport does not conduct its own condition surveys. (Department to verify response)
(b) As per COTO requirements, road condition surveys are required to be performed at least once after every 2 years for Class 1 roads. For the 69.1 km of National Roads (Class 1) under SANRAL administration in Uthukela District Municipality, the road condition surveys were performed on 9 October 2021 and 3 November 2021. For the 229 carriageway km (both directions) of National Roads (Class 1) under N3TC administration the road condition surveys were performed between 23 and 26 September 2021.
In addition to the above road condition surveys, both SANRAL and N3TC also perform daily route patrols to monitor for any accident damage, broken fences, flood damage, potholes, etc. and then issue appropriate job instructions for repairs to appointed service providers.
2. The outcome of the automated road condition surveys performed with road condition survey vehicles for the National Road sections in Uthukela District Municipality is summarised in Table 1 below for each km of National Road. The condition parameters measured include:
a) Roughness (m/km) - Measures smooth ride and wear and tear on vehicles and cargo.
b) Ruth Depth (mm) - Measures accumulation of surface water in wheel tracks and risk of vehicle aquaplaning
c) Texture Depth (mm) - Measures friction for safer wet weather travel at speeds exceeding 60km/h
d) Stuctural Strength – Measures structural strength to withstand the axle loads been applied.
e) Overall Condition Index – Weighted combination of the above condition parameters on a scale of 0 to 100, where 100 is perfect