Opposition to provincial road engineers’ plans for the R44 between Somerset West and Stellenbosch increases. At the same time, there is no indication that engineers will adapt their key assumptions and approach.
Proposal for the R44
The latest development is that a consortium of businesses, organisations and individuals appealed against the provincial authorities’ latest approval of a further step in the process. Heritage Western Cape, a provincial institution, also appealed.
Objections to the plans include:
- It is an extravagantly expensive solution of hundreds of millions of rand for a problem that is narrowly defined
- Even though the R44 is significantly expanded as a highway, traffic flow does not improve significantly
- The engineers’ solution imposes on landscapes rather than reacting sensitively to the environment.
- The engineers work from a silo approach in which the input of other disciplines and communities are not recognised as equally valid
- The new approach is to plan roads with attention to the environment, communities and good design.
For your information, we include the applications for appeals, as well as articles from Eikestadnuus:
Application for appeal by a consortium
Application for appeal by Heritage Western Cape
Article 2 and 3 from Eikestadnuus
