CITY OF CAPE TOWN
Constructing for and with the community Community liaison and engagement is crucial for the successful execution of infrastructure projects in South Africa. Knight Piésold Consulting, working in conjunction with its client’s professional team, demonstrates how first-class results can be achieved on a complex programme delivered for the City of Cape Town Roads and Stormwater Department.
D
uring 2014, Knight Piésold was appointed by the City of Cape Town to design and manage the rehabilitation of Stock Road between Govan Mbeki Road and the R300 in Philippi. The design made provision for non-motorised transport (NMT) and integrated rapid transit (IRT) infrastructure, as well as the replacement of municipal services. The latter included electrical, water, sewer and stormwater infrastructure. A key element included the rehabilitation and construction of a 2 050 m two-lane single carriageway into a two-lane dual carriageway. These and other works were carried out by main contractor Martin & East, with all phases completed by July 2019. “Project challenges included the relocation of unknown Eskom infrastructure from the proposed roadway into the roadside reserve, which was populated with existing services, as well as new approved services,” explains Naveed Sayed, Knight Piésold’s assistant resident engineer for the project. “A crucial aspect was the safety and accommodation of very dense pedestrian and vehicular movement, including heavy vehicles accessing a myriad of business properties,” he continues. In addition to industrial and
Naveed Sayed, Knight Piésold
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IMIESA January 2021
business hubs, crowding occurs around key transportation nodes that include Stock Road Station and the Joe Gabi Long Distance Bus Facility. Another challenge presented was the effective engagement and buy-in from local taxis during the early stages of the project. Their random stops and starts to collect and drop off passengers were causing major traffic congestion at the Rochester Road and Stock Road intersection. A solution was found after meeting taxi organisation officials via the project’s appointed community liaison. This led to the establishment of a temporary demarcated taxi parking area. Soon after implementation, there was a significant reduction in congestion. A similar strategy was used for the safe accommodation of informal traders, with demarcated areas provided during each construction phase.
Informal settlements, business traffic Difficulties
and
complexities
were
also
experienced when informal settlements began occupying the road reserve once the contractor started establishing on-site. An instruction was given to amend the kerb alignment and design of the proposed roadway timeously before any more informal structures were built. This meant the redesigning and relocating of newly proposed services. “A further issue that needed to be addressed was the inability of heavy vehicles to access business properties along Stock Road, following the installation of the new median,” says Sayed. “After extensive discussions and meetings with the client, provision was made to allow these businesses temporary access until such time as the planned IRT system is implemented.” There was also much uncertainty regarding the exact positions and depths of existing services. The lack of reliable, as-built details and the presence of unknown services required ongoing, unavoidable design changes. The infestation of illegal electrical power connections along Stock Road proved to be a major obstruction to many construction activities due to their odd locations. However, preventative measures were taken to ensure that these connections were not tampered with to avoid unintentional provocation of the local community.
Hard ground conditions The presence of calcrete rock meant that rockbreaking using machines had to be carried out alongside the fragile existing asbestos cement water main. This water main is the only water
Construction of bitumen treated base at Sheffield Road intersection
