Nekundi tells RA to speed up Aris River bridge replacement

Minister of works and transport Veikko Nekundi yesterday asked the Roads Authority (RA) to consider applying for emergency procurement to repair the Aris River bridge which collapsed last week after heavy rain.

The collapsed bridge left Rehoboth residents who commute to Windhoek stranded.

The bridge on the B1 national highway, located 30km south of Windhoek, was severely damaged by flash floods caused by heavy rains.

Nekundi said the bridge could not be repaired and that it must be replaced with a dual-carriageway bridge.

The minister, who inspected the bridge, advised RA chief executive Conrad Lutombi to consider applying for emergency procurement to ensure the timely completion of the new bridge.

“I think I am suitable to give a policy directive in the national interest. We cannot go on the normal method of procurement, that takes months and months. So, I have directed them to apply for the emergency procurement, and still stick to the rules of emergency procurement,” Nekundi said.

The minister also inspected the N$10-million bypass road, which was constructed to facilitate traffic movement along the busy route between the capital and southern Namibia, extending to the South African border.

The minister commended the contracted company, deployed on an emergency basis to construct a bypass, which is currently working on the second lane.

“They were deployed promptly, and they have restored a kind of a passage that was constructed to allow the traffic at least to flow, despite being one way,” the minister said.

Lutombi says the construction of the new Aris River bridge will take up to seven months to complete.

“You know about the collapse of this bridge, which we have now restored the temporary access, and we are working on the permanent bypass, which is two-way.

“And then after that, we hope to open it in the next three weeks. And then we are also busy with the design of the reconstruction of this bridge.

“The reconstruction will take us around seven months, so it’s not a quick solution.

We will have to make sure that we design it to withstand the flow of water we have observed. So it must be designed and constructed to a high standard,” he says.

Lutombi says he expects a comprehensive report detailing the extent of the damage to national highways, including rural roads. He adds that the road branching off from the Hosea Kutako road leading to the Ovitoto area has been closed to the public due to extensive damage caused by rain.

RA has also taken precautionary measures by closing the old road between Windhoek and Okahandja, as the bridge between Osona Village and Osona Military Base has shown signs of potential damage that could lead to its collapse.