Government in another promise to fix Bulawayo-Victoria Falls highway

AFTER numerous failed promises, the government has vowed to reconstruct the unnavigable Bulawayo – Victoria Falls highway, which has become a death trap for motorists.

Government has been making promises to address the road which has become difficult to navigate due to the potholes which have been a cause for many accidents.

Earlier this year, President Emmerson Mnangagwa, promised to address the road channel to the resort town with nothing tangible having materialised.

During the road rehabilitation programme which was carried out mid-year ahead of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Summit, the major highway among others in Matabeleland region, was left behind.

Responding to questions in the Senate Thursday, the Minister of Transport and lnfrastructure Development, Felix Mhona said government will address the road situation.

“I have traversed on most of the roads that he has mentioned. If you would relate, we were doing some sections, especially the Tsholotsho-Kezi road where we have done 5km which to me is inadequate given the length of the road.

‘We need to start from somewhere. Let me also acknowledge that in terms of road infrastructure, we have a road network close to 90 000km. Some areas were marginalised and I want to hasten to acknowledge that for years, our roads were neglected, not only the city roads but even rural roads.

“Some of our roads especially those going to places of our revolutionary icons, the roads were neglected. Alas, with the advent to the Second Republic, we have taken those roads on our radar,” said Mhona.

“Of great importance is the Victoria Falls road that the Senator has talked about, where we are going to start doing the road from Beitbridge to Bulawayo then to Victoria Falls.

“You will see us moving towards those roads and like the approach that we have agreed, not particularly doing 5km, but you will see us extending the works to quite a number of kilometres.”

Source: Government in another promise to fix Bulawayo-Victoria Falls highway (11/09/24)

Haulage trucks eyesore on Victoria Falls streets

LONG queues of haulage trucks parked on either side of the road just after Masue Bridge is the first thing a visitor into Victoria Falls encounters.

The hearty welcome Victoria Falls is popular for could soon be overshadowed by the ugly sight of the haulage trucks if no immediate action is taken.

Motorists, including tour operators’ vehicles carrying clients, have to reduce speed when approaching the Victoria Falls Truck Stop turn-off as the road that stretches up to Mkhosana turn-off has literally become a narrow strip due to trucks parked on either side.

There are also scores of touts and hawkers making the place an accident zone and a health hazard. Sex workers roam freely at night.

Residents on the CBZ stands west of the Hwange-Victoria Falls Road have to endure the dust which has even become a permanent coat to the interior and exterior of homes.

The place is a hive of activity as hawkers sell water and soft drinks to truck drivers while others solicit for jobs such as doing laundry.

Evenings have their own tale as sex workers have found a hunting ground.

The truck stop which is run by Victoria Falls City Council in a partnership with some private investors, can accommodate between 80 and 100 trucks at any given time.

Many park outside and sometimes there are close to 100 trucks between Mkhosana turn-off and the steep slope towards Masue Bridge.

The city mayor, Councillor Somveli Dlamini, said efforts are being made to find alternative land for parking.

“Our truck stop is overwhelmed by the volume of trucks hence many park outside which is not lawful though. The council is trying to find alternative land, this was once discussed in council but there hasn’t been a resolution,” he said.

Cllr Dlamini could not say whether the city has by-laws to regulate parking of the trucks.

Questions sent to council management had not been responded to by the time of going to print.

The truck drivers will be waiting for clearance to cross the border to Zambia or Botswana.

Some spend up to a month waiting for their documents.

Each truck, whether inside the truck stop or outside, is charged US$15 park fees for the whole period the truck is parked.

Drivers make fire to prepare their meals on the road side, posing the danger of starting veld fires.

The stretch of the road was also a traditional wildlife corridor as animals trek to the gorges.

A long-distance truck driver, Mr Gift Kapamba from Zambia, said they are also affected by dust while parked in the area.

Victoria Falls Combined Residents Association chairperson Mr Kelvin Moyo said residents have complained about the presence of haulage trucks.

“We are equally worried about the issue as it is both a health hazard especially for residents who live on the windward side and accident zone. We have received complaints from residents on the CBZ stands and we feel this should be speedily attended to. The council should provide alternative land for all trucks or come up with by-laws that regulate the situation there,” said Mr Moyo.

“However, there is no justification for people to see this as a hunting ground for commercial sex which we have seen happening. Besides sexually transmitted diseases there is also a danger of the spread of Covid-19 and accidents.”

A similar scenario is found at the Victoria Falls border where trucks block the no-man’s land between the Victoria Falls Bridge and Zimbabwean border and the entrance into the Rainforest.

Tour operators have complained about the issue at various fora saying their clients sometimes have to duck the trucks when walking to the bridge or entering the Rainforest.

Hospitality Association of Zimbabwe Matabeleland North chapter chairperson Mr Anald Musonza said while trucking business is a huge economic activity, it must be supported in a manner that allows other economic activities like tourism to survive.

“That issue needs urgent solution and trucks taken to designated parking sites. They have become a nuisance and blocking smooth movement of people in the city while also damaging roads. We are a tourism capital and the environment should be welcoming hence we need a more orderly parking process,” said Mr Musonza.

The presence of trucks negates the city’s drive towards a clean sustainable green tourism city.

Matabeleland North police spokesperson Inspector Glory Banda could not readily comment on the issue saying he had not been briefed on the situation on the ground.

Source:  Haulage trucks eyesore on Victoria Falls streets (02/09/2021)

Zambia shelves Victoria Falls Bridge decision

 Victoria Falls – The Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) has indefinitely shelved plans to force haulage trucks to use Kazungula Bridge by denying them access through Livingstone-Victoria Falls Border Post.

The ban was supposed to be effective March 1, 2021 and the justification given was the need to reduce the volume of heavy commercial traffic into the resorts of Livingstone and Victoria Falls towns.

Four countries – Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe –meet at the Kazungula quadripoint. Botswana and Zambia recently opened a bridge at Kazungula to link the two countries, in a project that Zimbabwe declined to participate in.

A former vice-president of the Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce, Mr Ozious Marange, said the ZRA’s rethink was welcome.

“We are very grateful that Zambia postponed the ban on the use of Victoria Falls Bridge by commercial trucks. They should let transporters freely choose which route to use instead of forcing them to use an expensive one,” he said.

He added that authorities should also consider a transit point at Batoka for transporters moving between Zambia and Zimbabwe.

According to the Shipping and Forwarding Agents Association of Zimbabwe, nearly 100 haulage trucks daily cross the Victoria Falls Bridge connecting Zambia and Zimbabwe over the Zambezi River. Most of these are 30-tonners carrying copper, coal, coke, cobalt, sulphur and other commodities to destinations that include Angola, Botswana, the DRC, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

However, tourism sector stakeholders support the proposal to induce transporters to transit through Kazungula as a means of reducing noise and air pollution in Livingstone and Victoria Falls.

Source: Zambia shelves Kazungula Bridge decision (05/03/21)

Construction of Kazungula bridge halts again

 Zambia has once more failed to pay the company constructing the Kazungula Bridge, a project that crosses the Zambezi River and borders Botswana and Zambia.

The contractor, Daewoo E&C has complained that despite numerous requests for money to complete the bridge, there has been no response.

The contractor fears that, given that Zambia has failed to pay back Eurobonds, chances of being paid are bleak

The construction has therefore been halted once more.

Source: No funding, Construction of Kazungula bridge halts again (09/12/20)

Kazungula Bridge boosts Bots tourism

 Harare - The opening of Kazungula Bridge will boost tourist arrivals into Botswana’s tourism mecca of Kasane, the country’s Tourism Minister Philda Kereng has said.

The bridge straddles the Zambezi River at Kazungula Crossing where Botswana and Zambia share a border, and also stretches over the confluence of the Zambezi and Chobe rivers where Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe meet.

The 923m and US$259 million bridge is part of a broader infrastructure initiative that will ultimately connect the Port of Durban in South Africa to the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Botswana’s Environment, Natural Resources, Conservation and Tourism Minister Kereng said the bridge is expected to open to traffic this year.

The gateway to Chobe National Park, Kasane spreads out along the banks of the Chobe River where an array of hotels, guest houses and campsites can accommodate all the visitors to the world-renowned facility.

“This bridge has recently been handed over by the contractors, it is complete. It is a bridge that is quite a milestone for the economy of Botswana and for the tourism industry,” Minister Kereng said after touring the bridge last week.

“We appreciate this bridge very much especially at this point where we are diversifying tourism, Kasane becomes a much more diversified location or tourist destination. Also for tourists, when you go to London (England) for instance, you have the London Bridge and all these big rivers with nice bridges they are tourist attractions on their own so we are looking at this beautiful bridge and saying it is going to interest our tourists after seeing the animals there is also something else they can see. It will be able to enhance the face of Kasane.”

Minister Kereng went on: “We are also informed that this bridge is well blended into the ecosystem, the environment of Chobe. There is a railway line that has been incorporated into the bridge, and the interesting part is that this bridge has incorporated features that are friendly to the environment, we hear that there is a breeding place for hippos near the bridge and the rubber that has been used around the railway is going to absorb all the sound that would otherwise disturb the animals.”

Botswana recently allowed the resumption of chartered flights into the country's prime tourist destinations, in an attempt to boost the tourism sector which has lost hundreds of millions of dollars since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The chartered flights are being allowed to land at two airports in Maun and Kasane, both in the vicinity of the vast Okavango Delta, one of the world’s largest wetlands.

Tourism contributes around 13 percent to the So/uthern African country’s GDP./

Source: Kazungula Bridge boosts Bots tourism (28/11/20)

Two cargo trucks sink in Zambezi

 Kazungula police are investigating two rare and bizarre accidents in which two trucks sank into the Zambezi River as they attempted to board the Kazungula ferry on Saturday and Monday respectively.

According to Kazungula Police Station Commander Superintendent Paul Chaluza, in the first incident on Saturday, a truck carrying building material from South Africa to Zambia slid off the pontoon and fell into the Zambezi River.

“The surface is sloping and slippery, and from what we’ve learnt, the truck never made it fully onto the ferry before it slid into the river.

Fortunately, the drivers managed to quickly jump out of the cabin and onto the ferry before the trucks were fully submerged,” said Chaluza.

The Station Commander further revealed that no one was hurt in the accident.

“The truck was also successfully pulled out of the river the same day,” he said.

However, just two days later on Monday afternoon, another truck hauling salt from South Africa to Zambia suffered the same fate, as the trailer head slid-off the pontoon into the river, carrying with it tons of salt.

“Just like in the Saturday incident, the driver managed to escape unharmed,” Chaluza told The Voice.

He further said the cause of the accident is not conclusive and their investigations continue.

“We can’t say accidents were due to human error, the cause could be mechanical, and as I told you, the area is sloping and slippery. We can only be certain after the completion of our investigations,” he said.

The costs of the damage are yet to be compounded, but it is estimated to run into millions of Pula.

The Kazungula top cop however said the incidents of sinking tricks are rare in his jurisdiction.

“These are isolated incidents. It does happen but not in quick succession like we experienced this week,” he said.

Estimated to have started operating in Botswana in the mid-60s, the pontoon’s days as a reliable mode of transport are numbered with the new impressive Kazungula Bridge due to open for business on 1st of December.

Source: Two cargo trucks sink in Zambezi (17/11/20)

Daewoo E&C Completes Construction of Kazungula Bridge in Botswana

 Daewoo Engineering & Construction (E&C) has completed Kazungula Bridge over the Zambezi River in Botswana, Africa.

Daewoo E&C said on Oct. 8 that it received a taking-over certificate from the Botswanan and Zambian governments on Sept. 5, along with a certificate of 10 million accident-free hours.

The bridge is the first extradosed bridge construction project that Daewoo E&C won overseas in 2014.

Kazungula Bridge is a 923-meter-long, 18.5-meter-wide extradosed bridge with a 687-meter-long access road and a 2,170-meter-long single-track railway. The bridge is expected to improve the transportation and logistics infrastructure around the region.

As Kazungula Bridge is a bridge with a railway and a road, the safety of the bridge itself significantly matters. Therefore, an extradosed bridge model was applied to it as it can widen distances between piers and has an advantage in vibration control.

An extradosed bridge is a bridge where a girder-reinforcing cable is attached to the main tower like the cable of a cable-stayed bridge. The exterior of an extradosed bridge looks like a cable-stayed bridge. But the height of its tower is lower than that of a cable-stayed bridge so the cable plays a relatively small role in buttressing the upper layer of the bridge. Therefore, the upper layer should be designed to be stronger.

An extradosed bridge is structurally more advantageous than a cable-stayed bridge as a railway bridge.

Kazungula Bridge has six main towers standing in a row, which provides a fine view. It is expected to become a landmark in the region.

Source: Daewoo E&C Completes Construction of Kazungula Bridge in Botswana (08/10/20)

Air Zim to review landing rights

Air Zimbabwe has proposed to review its landing rights, particularly for Victoria Falls International Airport, a development which, if successful, will see all international flights into the country being rerouted to Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport from Victoria Falls and Bulawayo.

The airline, which was placed under reconstruction last October, is looking to set up the RGM as a regional hub.

“We are mulling to review our landing rights for all international flights. Our thinking is, as we develop Harare (the RGM International Airport) into a hub, currently we have other airlines flying direct into Victoria Falls, into Bulawayo.

“We are thinking these should fly into Harare and allow us to distribute all those passengers around Zimbabwe. By so doing we are effectively creating our own hub,” he said.

Victoria Falls Airport is currently directly accessible from that city through the fifth freedom rights arrangement to all the major airline networks,” said assistant administrator Tonderayi Mukubvu.

The fifth freedom allows an airline to carry revenue traffic between foreign countries as a part of services connecting the airline’s own country. It is the right to carry passengers from one’s own country to a second country, and from that country onward to a third country and so on.

However, Air Zimbabwe administrator Reggie Saruchera of Grant Thornton says the direct accessibility of Victoria Falls Airport works against the airline’s long-term goal of setting the RGM International Airport as a regional hub.

“Yes, we had not capacitated our airline, and it was good wisdom for the Government at that time to let them just go straight and land at Victoria Falls, there was no choice.

“But now, once we have capacitated our airline we can then begin to run all our Harare to Bulawayo, Harare to Victoria Falls, Victoria Falls to Harare, and then the international airlines can come and connect from RGM. We then create the kind of hub that South Africa is creating,” he said.

Since the completion of Victoria Falls Airport’s refurbishment in 2016 in tandem with the granting of the fifth freedom, international and regional airlines have added over 80 000 seats to Victoria Falls. And there are downstream benefits for hotels and lodges in the resort town in terms of improvement in their room occupancy and bookings for the various activities.

Mr Saruchera believes the benefits can be even wider if RGM International Airport becomes the hub.

“South Africa’s OR Tambo International Airport, for example, currently handles around 55 200 people a day. You can imagine a person spending a dollar or two a day if they are 55 200 of them, the impact that it will have on the economy even when the airline makes huge losses. But it will only work when the airline has appropriate aircraft,” he said.

But then Zimbabwe is signatory to the Yamoussoukro Decision.

The Yamoussoukro Decision was a treaty that allowed for open skies among most African countries. The decision was endorsed by 44 members of the African Union in 1999, and became binding in 2002.

The treaty grants fifth freedom transit rights between all of its signatories. It also sought to eliminate restrictions on ownership of airlines and frequency limits on international routes between signatory states. The practical implementation and application of its policies, however, faced a number of setbacks and was not completed by all African Union members. And in 2018, the Single African Air Transport Market was launched with the intent of fully implementing the Yamoussoukro Decision.

Air Zimbabwe executive manager for airline systems and administration Captain Harry Madangure, says some airlines in the region are not in strict adherence to the open skies policy and that a modicum of protection is required for the national airline.

“We are signatories to this Yamoussoukro Decision, which allows fifth freedom rights to carriers within Africa, so we can go and say we want to fly between Johannesburg and Durban, we actually have our airline flying those routes,” he said.

“But in reality even though South Africa is a signatory if we try and do that you will find that there are a lot of stumbling blocks. It will take even five years before we are granted those rights, but with Zimbabwe we just opened up, there was no protection of the national carrier and that needs to be revised.”

Source: Air Zim to review landing rights (16/6/19)

Kazungula Pontoon Succumbs To Overloaded Truck

The Kazungula Pontoon, a popular mode of border transport between Zambia and Botswana, on Monday morning succumbed to what appeared to be an overloaded freight-liner.

According to eyewitness, the pontoon failed to sustain the weight of the truck which was reportedly overloaded with assorted goods.

There was no fatality recorded, but it feared that the pontoon may be out of service for a long period.

Source: Kazungula Pontoon Succumbs To Overloaded Truck (13/11/17)

Harare-Victoria Falls shorter route opened

Government has opened a shorter route that links Harare and Victoria Falls under the Emergency State Roads Rehabilitation Programme.

The Harare-Kwekwe-Gokwe Chirisa-Cross Dete to Victoria Falls Road was completed recently, giving travellers an option rather than go the longer way via Bulawayo.

Government is on course to finish the rehabilitation of the national road network before the commencement of the rains under the Emergency State Roads Rehabilitation Programme, a senior official at the District Development Fund (DDF) has said.

Government is currently on the second phase of rehabilitating the road network after extensive damage by Cyclone Dineo-induced rains early this year, the same official said.

President Mugabe earlier in the year declared the roads a State of Emergency, paving way for financial resource mobilisation.

DDF national deputy director planning Philemon Mubvumi said the Zireva-Huchu-Masakadza Road in Gokwe South was the shortest route that links Victoria Falls and Harare.

The road that links the capital and the grand tourist attraction is 875 kilometres, but the new route opened by DDF will be approximately 780km, about 100km less.

"The new road has a lot of economic value to the country as it also links with Chirisa Game Reserve," said Mr Mubvumbi. "We expect to finish the whole project before the start of the rainy season."

Government finished construction of Pohwe Bridge on the new road in 1998, but the road was not being used as the access to the bridge was left undone.

Last week, DDF opened the new road expected to bring a lot of economic activity to the people of Gokwe and other surrounding areas.

Chirisa Game Reserve has also been under-utilised because of the poor road infrastructure.

DDF Midlands provincial coordinator Mrs Molly Shoniwa said the opening of the road and a number of roads that were being rehabilitated in her province would bring positive results, especially in agriculture.

Source: Harare-Victoria Falls shorter route opened (27/09/17)

Ministers derail NRZ revival

THE $400 million deal to recapitalise the National Railways of Zimbabwe has been thrown into jeopardy, after rival suitors for the parastatal, fronted by Cabinet ministers, launched a last-minute bid to abort the transaction.

The ministers are pushing for the involvement of China Railway Eryuan Engineering Corporation (CREEC), which did not participate in the bidding process and Sinohydro, which took part in the tender but lost out. CREEC signed an agreement with NRZ for railway network planning and rehabilitation of four corridors, including the supply of traction and rolling stock and other equipment in May 2015.

The company undertook a feasibility study which initially put the project cost at $750 million. The figure was subsequently reduced to $324 million.

The derailment of the NRZ’s revival programme risks damaging and expensive litigation for government should it decide to cancel the tender. The country also stands to lose its strategic geographical advantage which makes it a potential regional hub.

As President Robert Mugabe’s government bickers and dithers over the rail project, Zimbabwe’s neighours are investing in networks to bypass the country.

On Zimbabwe’s western border, Botswana is pursuing a $260 million road-rail link with Zambia, while the African Development Bank (AfDB) is funding Mozambique’s Nacala rail project, to link that country with Malawi and, potentially, Zambia by extension.

The Diaspora Infrastructure Development Group (DIDG) — a consortium of 500 non-resident Zimbabwean professionals — in partnership with South Africa’s Transnet, was last month announced winner of the NRZ recapitalisation tender.

However, multiple sources told The Financial Gazette this week that Mugabe’s Cabinet has held back signing off on the deal after spirited opposition led by Information 
Communications and Technology Minister, Supa Mandiwanzira, Macro-Economic Planning and Investment Promotion Minister Obert Mpofu and Labour Minister Prisca Mupfumira.
Transport Minister Joram Gumbo, who sought Cabinet approval for the deal last week, failed to defend it against the onslaught from ministers opposed to it.

“After a sustained onslaught, mainly from the trio, Gumbo failed to defend the transaction,” one source said.

“This prompted the President to ask the minister to go back and review.”

Another source said ministers opposed to the DIDG-Transnet-NRZ deal raised three main issues — financial and technical capacity as well as a five percent royalty payment due to the government of Zimbabwe annually, for the duration of the 25-year project.

“This is despite the fact that the tender documents bear evidence of availability of funds and financial backing from major South African bank, Standard Bank, Rand Merchant Bank, Nedbank and development financier, Industrial Development Corporation,” the source said.
Documents seen by The Financial Gazette show that the institutions’ financial backing for the transaction exceeds $1 billion, far more than the scope of the NRZ recapitalisation.

“It was evident, early on, Minister Gumbo was not sufficiently prepared to make the case for this transaction. In the end, he came just short of disowning it.”

Apart from enjoying the technical expertise of Transnet, DIDG, is led by professionals currently involved in billion-dollar deals in South Africa and east Africa. Mpofu, a former transport minister weighed in, saying an abortive deal between NRZ and the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) had been a better proposition. 

The $700 million DBSA loan deal, which fell through a few years ago, was priced at 16 percent, according to officials with inside knowledge of the discussions. Funding for the DIDG-Transnet-NRZ deal is understood to be at about 6,5 percent interest.
“The five percent royalty clause deliberately misrepresented as a purchase price by opponents of the deal is just a structure put in place to clear the NRZ’s historical debt, mainly salary arrears,” a source said.
Ministers opposed to the DIDG-Transnet-NRZ deal are reportedly doing the bidding for a rival group led by a non-resident indigenisation proponent and banker, who is understood to have tried to lobby Transnet to drop DIDG.
The ministers want government to rope in the China’s CREC and Sinohydro. Well placed sources said CREC wanted to be awarded the tender without submitting a bid.
They added that government exposed itself to the risk of damaging and expensive litigation if it moved to cancel the tender.
Chimhandamba said his consortium remained committed to the transaction, but declined to comment further.
Gumbo declined to comment when contacted for this story.
NRZ chairman Larry Mavima yesterday confirmed that the transaction was under review, but declined to give details of Cabinet’s decision.
“Cabinet issues are confidential, so for now it will be difficult for me to comment.
“But I can tell you that there were some questions regarding the structure of the Transnet/DIDG deal and certain financial capacity,” Mavima said.
“Cabinet has now asked the minister to go back and verify the capacity. I believe the shareholder is right to question the capacity of the winner. I, however, hope this is not a situation where a golden opportunity can be missed.
“We are hoping to submit clarifications soon so that government can reconsider its decision because this was the best opportunity for NRZ. This was going to revive the economy as it would benefit from cheaper transportation for goods.”
Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions secretary general, Japhet Moyo said government should not let the NRZ deal collapse, as it has brought renewed hope to the rail company’s estimated 5 000 employees, collapse.

Citing the $750 million to revive Zisco, which suffered a stillbirth a few years ago, after India’s Essar walked away Moyo said: “This would not surprise us if the deal does not materialise because the culture has not changed. It’s a disaster for the economy and for the workers who are owed millions of dollars because they were starting to see light at the end of the tunnel.”
The DIDG-Transnet consortium emerged winners after one of the most transparent bidding processes conducted by the State in recent times.
There were five other bidders vying for the NRZ revival, namely China Civil Engineering, Sino Hydro, accountancy firm Crowe Horwath & Welsha, SHM Railway of Malaysia and Croyeaux Limited of Zimbabwe.
The adjudication process was overseen by an adjudication team comprising members from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development, the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, the Office of the President and Cabinet, State Enterprises Restructuring Agency and NRZ.
The NRZ board also engaged Deloitte as a transaction advisor.
newsdesk@fingaz.co.zw

Source: Ministers derail NRZ revival (21/09/17)

Victoria Falls bridge under threat says tourism association

The Livingstone Tourism Association has raised concerns over continued congestion caused by heavy trucks at the Victoria Falls in border post in Livingstone, saying it has potential to reduce the lifespan of the facility.

LTA now wants the government to consider closing the Victoria Falls bridge to heavy trucks in order to protect the facility. Speaking during a media briefing in Livingstone, LTA  chairman Mr Alexander Munthali said the Victoria Falls border post has been turned into a truck parking yard because the queue of heavy trucks increases daily.

“We need the trucking business but we do not need it in the middle of the city or at our border entry points like Victoria Falls and Kazungula Border as is the case.

“A by-pass is required to take truck traffic from the west coming from Kazungula to the north of the Harry Mwaanga Nkumbula International Airport to intersect the Lusaka road at the weighbridge area,” he said.

He said the by-pass must be a toll road which can collect revenue from trucks to help in  road maintenance.

The LTA chair argued that the bridge was not built to contain heavy traffic as is the case today.

“The bridge will get damaged and this will be another huge cost for the government. Besides, the recent situation at the border has already instigated different views as circulation on social media is increasing over the issue,” he said.

Source: Victoria Falls bridge under threat says tourism association (10/06/17)

Vic Falls bridge under threat

SHIKANDA KAWANGA, Livingstone

THE Livingstone Tourism Association (LTA) has asked Government to consider closing the Victoria Falls bridge to heavy trucks following heavy flow of traffic that has potential to reduce the lifespan of the facility.

And LTA chairman Alexander Munthali expressed concern at the continued congestion caused by heavy trucks at the Victoria Falls border post in Livingstone. Speaking during a media briefing in Livingstone, Mr Munthali said the Victoria Falls border post has been turned into a truck parking yard because the queue of heavy trucks increases daily.

“We need the trucking business but we do not need it in the middle of the city or at our border entry points like Victoria Falls and Kazungula Border as is the case. “A by-pass is required to take truck traffic from the west coming from Kazungula to the north of the Harry Mwaanga Nkumbula International Airport to intersect the Lusaka road at the weighbridge area,” he said.

He said the by-pass must be a toll road which can collect revenue from trucks for road maintenance.

Mr Munthali said the iconic structure was not built to contain heavy traffic as is the case presently. “The bridge will get damaged and this will be another huge cost for the government. Besides, the recent situation at the border has already instigated different views as circulation on social media is increasing over the issue,” he said.

Source: Vic Falls bridge under threat (10/06/17)

Victoria Falls airport to miss completion deadline

THE new look multi-million dollar Victoria Falls International Airport, currently undergoing a Chinese-funded upgrade, will miss the September completion deadline, a source familiar with the project said, although government remains hopeful that it can still be commissioned this year.

The Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe (CAAZ) initiated the $150 million airport expansion project in February 2013 to boost its aircraft handling capacity and tourism in Victoria Falls and expected the all the project works to be completed by next month.

“We will miss September deadline but details will be clear next week on Monday when management from Harare will come for a meeting with stakeholders,” a source told The Source last week.

Last year the contractor, China Jiangsu, requested an extension, first to June and later to September this year.

Initially, the international terminal building was scheduled for a November 2014 completion while the new four kilometre runway was scheduled for completion last December.

None of them are complete with work still ongoing on the three storey structure, resurfacing the old parking area and clearing outside parking area. Construction of the control tower and fire station is still underway.

The project also involves upgrading of the domestic terminal building, construction of a new water plant and installation of state –of–the art aviation equipment.  The aircraft parking area is being extended to allow parking of five wide body aircraft at any given time.

However, tourism minister Walter Mzembi who was in the resort town last Tuesday, said the facility was still within its completion timeframe.

“I am hopeful the airport is still within its completion timeframe. Remember there is a lot of work going on and this facility will be a game changer,” he said.

“As a ministry we are also doing something parallel as we are inviting airlines because we hope the airport will be commissioned before year-end.”

The new-look airport would handle more than 1,7 million passengers annually, up from the current 500,000 and would process wide-bodied aircraft.

The expansion is being funded by China Exim Bank.

Airlines currently using the airport are Air Zimbabwe, Fly Africa, South Africa Airways, Comair and Air Namibia.

Source: Victoria Falls airport to miss completion deadline (12/09/15)

The Elephant Express, a unique safari activity in Zimbabwe

IN THE early 1900s a railway was built between Bulawayo and Victoria Falls. It cut through virgin hardwood forest, and for much of its length it was perfectly straight as it crossed the deep sands of Hwange. 

The area then, as now, was home to prolific wildlife – King Mzilikazi declared it his own special reserve. For the last several decades few tourists ever travelled this line, as passenger services deteriorated and the line was dedicated to freight traffic.

This year Imvelo Safari Lodges have changed all that, with a custom-built self-powered rail carriage to transfer its guests from Impofu (Main Camp) to their lodges in the southeast, Bomani and Camelthorn.

The railcar seats 22 passengers and is fitted with a flush loo for convenience. Finishings are elegant, with all seats window-class for unobscured game viewing. With an independent engine and gearbox at both ends of the railcar, the Elephant Express was designed to travel either forwards or backwards, for both safety and simplicity of operation.

What a magnificent start or end to a safari in Hwange National Park, gently rattling along in style with a cool drink, enjoying the wildlife and vast wilderness around you!

• Images © Imvelo Safari Lodges, Zimbabwe

Source: The Elephant Express, a unique safari activity in Zimbabwe (16/06/15)