Name and Location
Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP), South Africa.

Client
The project is managed by State-owned company South African National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral).

Project Description
The GFIP is a long-term freeway upgrade and expansion project, which entails the upgrade and construction of about 561 km of freeways in Gauteng.

Value
The Department of Transport (DoT), through Sanral, has invested more than R21-billion in the first phase of the project.

Duration
Despite being delayed by a shortage of bitumen and adverse weather in 2011, Phase 1 of the project was substantially completed by the end of 2011.

Latest Developments
The Opposition to Urban Tolling Alliance (Outa) has welcomed a ruling by the High Court in Pretoria granting it leave to appeal against a previous judgment made by the court in December 2012.

Judge Louis Vorster ruled in December that e-tolling could proceed because the GFIP had been lawfully instituted. In his judgment, Vorster said only the physical aspects of the project were up for public debate, and not the costs.

Outa’s legal representative argued on January 25 this year that that Vorster had "erred fundamentally" in his interpretation of section 27 (4) of the Sanral Act. He said Vorster had not engaged in the argument against a lack of "procedural fairness" with regard to the way in which Sanral had informed the public about e-tolling.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
Basil Read Interchange [I/C] (improvements on the N1 section); Siyavaya joint venture (JV), comprising Group 5, Power Construction, Liviero, Umso Construction and Bophelong Construction (work package A and E); GFI Contractors JV, comprising Wilson Bayly Holmes-Ovcon (WBHO), Sanyati Construction, Rainbow Construction, Glash Construction, Munasi Civil Contractors and Esorfranki Civils, formerly Patula Construction (work package B); GLMB JV, comprising Grinaker-LTA, a member of the Aveng group, Moseme Road Construction and Boitshoko Road Surfacing (work package C and F); Basil Read JV, comprising Roadcrete, Chavani Construction and Dipcivil, or BRCD (work package D); CMC JV, comprising CMC di Ravenna South Africa and G4 Civils (work package G); Raubex Construction (upgrade of the R21); Power Group (upgrade of the R21 section 1 and 2); Tosas (subcontractor – bituminous binders); ETC JV (multilane free-flow tolling system); Jet Demolition (demolition of Allandale I/C bridge); ARQ Consulting Engineers (design of the Lynnwood Glen pedestrian and pipe bridge); Cadcon, subcontractor of BRCD JV (manufacture of the Lynnwood Glen pedestrian and pipe bridge); Beka (luminaires); Esorfranki Civils (work package J); Goba SSI JV (Gillooly's flyover); Much Asphalt, a Murray & Roberts company (asphalt supplier) and ETC JV, comprising Traffic Management Technologies and Kapsch TrafficCom (design and operate the open-road tolling system).

On Budget and on Time?
E-tolling was suspended on April 28, 2012, pending a full review; however, the Constitutional Court has set aside the interdict preventing Sanral from tolling some of Gauteng’s highways, while the proposed e-tolling system is undergoing judicial review in the North Gauteng High Court, in Pretoria.

Contact Details for Project Information
Sanral northern region manager of toll and traffic and project manager Alex van Niekerk, tel +27 11 426 6200; or corporate communications manager Priya Pillay, tel +27 12 844 8000, fax +27 12 844 8200 or email pressoffice@nra.co.za; or project manager: communications Wanda Cloete, tel +27 12 844 8000, fax +27 12 844 8200 or email wcloete@nra.co.za.