William Nicol upgrade complete by November
DAINFERN - According to MEC for Roads and Transport Ismail Vadi, there will soon be a reprieve for motorists frustrated by the construction on William Nicol Drive in Fourways.
The construction on the section of the road that stretches from Leaping Frog Shopping Centre to just before Diepsloot started in September 2011, and the projected date for completion was meant to be April 2014. However Vadi said the delay in construction was due to construction teams encountering underground infrastructure like fibre optics that needed to be moved.
The road was also meant to be a dual carriageway but has since increased in size to include three lanes in both directions as well as a 2.5metre combined pedestrian and cycling lane on either side of the road.
Vadi said the road would be complete by November this year.
He also confirmed that one third of the finance for the road has come from Steyn City while the government has contributed two thirds. Vadi encouraged more support from the private sector as he believes this will reduce the burden on government to upgrade infrastructure around new developments.
Vadi thanked the residents of Fourways and other motorists who utilise William Nicol Drive for their patience, but mentioned that there have been incidents of motorists being rude and abusive to pointsmen.
Vadi also spoke to motorists on the corner of William Nicol and Broadacres drives about the status of the upgrade.
When asked about the issue of taxis not obeying the rules of the road on William Nicol during the construction period, Vadi responded that he was aware that taxis have been particularly aggressive in the area. “Taxi drivers need to exercise the same patience and obey the rules of the road, if not they must be punished,” he said.
Councillor John Mendelsohn of Ward 94 was also present at the briefing and said the upgrade to the road was the biggest issue in his ward at the moment. He said he was glad that Vadi had engaged with motorists in person.
“I think it’s the correct thing to do for a highly-placed politician to show his face,” Mendelsohn said.
He added that congestion on the road has been a big issue but bad traffic behaviour has made the problem worse.
“There definitely needs to be better law enforcement in this area,” he said.
Vadi said the second phase of construction will be announced soon.
