New Swazi highway speeds up Gauteng bound traffic

MBABANE – A new highway under construction in the north central part of the country will enable road freight to travel from the central commercial town Manzini to the northern border post at Matsamo for deliveries to and from Gauteng, without having to pass through the crowded capital Mbabane. Manzini, “the hub of Swaziland,” includes the adjacent Matsapha Industrial Estate, home of most of the country’s industrial activity. Road freight traffic to Johannesburg now runs through Oshoek Border Post. The new route, which allows high-speed traffic to fork-off to Matsamo at the agricultural hamlet of Luve north of Manzini, or continue to the northern Mananga Border Gate on a recently opened highway, will be completed next year. Road freight haulers have welcomed the new highway option to Gauteng for two reasons. Though travel won’t be cut in terms of distance, the congested Oshoek post is known for delays and user complaints about Sars operations. Secondly, the Mbabane by-pass road that is to permit highway travel from Manzini to Oshoek without going through downtown Mbabane is stalled after construction halted last month.