Logistics study reflects extent of SA road deterioration

As South Africa’s transport model remains heavily reliant on the road network, the deteriorating road quality and the impact of it on the cost of logistics in the country remains a major concern. According to the Sixth State of Logistics Survey, the percentage of bad roads in South Africa’s secondary road network increased from 8% in 1998 to 20% in 2008, while the percentage of bad national roads increased from 7% to 9% over the same period. According to Hans Ittman, CSIR built environment executive director, the deterioration of road quality leads to a drastic increase in vehicle maintenance and repair costs, in return leading to higher product and logistics costs. He said in an effort to understand the potential effects of bad roads on the total logistics costs of companies, a case study was conducted at two operating companies within a large logistics service provider in the country. “This study showed that a truck travelling on the secondary road network from Newcastle to Gauteng over a distance of 300km cost R627 per trip, while a truck travelling between Durban and Gauteng on a national road for 300 km would amount to a cost of about R270 per trip,” said Ittmann. “When comparing the totals per year for truck 1 at about R 125 400 and truck 2 at R 54 000, the potential percentage increase between a bad and a good road was estimated at about 132%.” Ittman said that most, if not all transportation companies in the country, were experiencing an increase in internal logistics costs due to inadequate road conditions. “It eventually adds up to a significant increase in the logistics costs of a country. As the logistics costs increase, the cost of products in the global marketplace increases, which can have devastating effects on the global competitiveness of a country.” Mutshutshu Nxumalo, president of the South African Road Federation, said maintenance of South Africa’s roads was of utmost importance. “It is common knowledge that we have a maintenance backlog in the country. The lack of preserving roads seems to be an African thing – ask anyone who has travelled across the border to our neighbouring countries. It is imperative that we address road maintenance.” He said it was worrying that a major stakeholder like the Department of Transport (DoT) was not present at events such as the launch of the survey as it was critical they addressed the issues around road maintenance in South Africa immediately.