In an attempt to ease traffic congestion in Mauritius, the Road Development Authority (RDA)-the government agency responsible for the construction, maintenance and improvement of main roads in Mauritius- is implementing a project named as the Road Decongestion Program (RDP).
This has been deemed necessary as the severe morning and afternoon traffic jams have been estimated to cost the economy around Rs 2 billion annually.
The chief area of activities are concentrated within Port Louis with the roads from the South leading to it being the Motorway (M1) and the Port-Louis – St Jean Road (A1), and the roads from the North being the Motorway (M2) and the Port Louis Central Flacq Road (A2).
This limitation in accessibility is the principal reason for the congestion problems and under the RDP, new road networks will be established and the concept of “toll roads” will be introduced in the island.
Till now the fee amount has not yet been decided by the government. However, the Minister of Public Infrastructure and Transport, Anil Baichoo has announced that public transport and utility vehicles will be exempted from the charge. The toll will be introduced in places where alternate roads exist. Thus, drivers will be able to opt for the other way if they want to avoid the toll payment. Those who pass through the toll roads will benefit from a grant from the government.
The RDA has appointed the South African firm, SPP Project Solutions Private Ltd, as its Transaction Advisor. The latter has been given the responsibility of carrying out a feasibility study for the toll road project. Already 8 zones have been identified:
_ the Port-Louis Ring Road
_ the Harbour Bridge
_ the A1M1 Bridge
_ the Terre-Rouge-Verdun Link Road
_ the Verdun-Trianon Link Road
_ the highway between Bagatelle and Valentina
_ the highway M1 between Pont-Fer and Port-Louis
_ the highway M2 between Quai D and Terre-Rouge.