The Hemel-en-Aarde Road which connects Sandbaai (Hermanus) and Caledon has been reopened with Stop-and-Go traffic accommodation. The first vehicles traversed the pass on Tuesday, 14 November 2023. This comes exactly a week after the reopening of the Franschhoek Pass.
The road was closed following a severe weather system which hit the Western Cape during the Heritage Day long weekend. The teams started working on temporary repairs as soon as the engineering team was satisfied that the slips (landslides) had stabilised sufficiently. The bypasses were completed to allow access to the road.
The provincial Minister of Infrastructure, Tertuis Simmers, expressed his joy on the reopening of Hemel-en-Aarde and said, “The reopening of this road-pass is significant not only to the surrounding communities but also businesses and the agriculture sector. This will allow for the resumption of commercial activities in the region. The agriculture sector will be able to get their produce quicker to markets and elevate the stress of excess inventory management.”
“It is a connector for tourists to the area and the sector will once again leverage from this invaluable route,” Minister Simmers added.
The Minister continued and said, “I am aware of the inconvenience the closure has had on the local community and industry as well as visitors and we know that there will be delays with the Stop-and-Go traffic accommodation, but this is less than the time spent using the alternative route.”
The reopening will also significantly reduce the traffic volume on Karwyderskraal Road. On the reopened portion of the route, there are two Stop-and-Go points. The public is requested to remain patient and plan for the waiting periods at these Stop-and-Go points, especially over the coming festive season.
The department foresees that it will still be a considerable period before the road will allow full two-way traffic. Temporary closures are highly likely during the future construction period. Where there are planned closures, it will be announced on the Western Cape Government website.
Nice Gnome
It is wise to remember that firefighters fight fire with water before you fight fire with fire
Lady Fantastic
A Priest was seated next to Van Der Merwe on a flight to Brakpan.
After the plane was airborne, drink orders were taken.
Van Der Merwe asked for a Rum and Coke, which was brought and placed before him.
The flight attendant then asked the priest if he would like a drink.
He replied in disgust \”I\’d rather be savagely raped by a dozen whores than let liquor touch my lips.\”
Van Der Merwe then handed his drink back to the attendant and said \”Me too, I didn\’t know we had a choice.\”