R573 (South Africa)

Last updated

SA road R573.svg
Regional route R573
Route information
Maintained by SANRAL
Length138 km (86 mi)
Major junctions
Southwest endSA road R513.svg R513 at Pretoria
Major intersectionsSA road R568.svg R568 at KwaMhlanga
SA road R544.svg R544 near Kwaggafontein
SA road R568.svg R568 at Siyabuswa
Northeast endSA road N11.svgSA road R33.svg N11  / R33 at Marble Hall
Location
Country South Africa
Major cities Pretoria, KwaMhlanga, Kwaggafontein, Siyabuswa, Marble Hall
Highway system
← SA road R572.svg R572 → SA road R575.svg R575

The R573 is a Regional Route in South Africa that connects Pretoria with Marble Hall via KwaMhlanga and Siyabuswa. As the road passes through Moloto (at the Gauteng-Mpumalanga border), the entire route is known as the Moloto Road. It is maintained by the South African National Roads Agency. [1]

Contents

Route

Its south-western terminus is a junction with the R513 road just north-east of Pretoria, Gauteng (east of Montana Park). It heads north-east for 48 kilometres, through Kameeldrift, bypassing the Roodeplaat Dam and Roodeplaat Nature Reserve, to enter Mpumalanga at the town of Moloto and proceed to the town of KwaMhlanga, where it meets the R568 road. [1]

It continues east-north-east for 26 kilometres to the town of Kwaggafontein. Just before Kwaggafontein, it meets the northern terminus of the R544 road. From Kwaggafontein, the R573 continues north-east to bypass Mathys Zyn Loop and Boekenhouthoek before crossing into Limpopo at the town of Witfontein. Soon after, the R573 meets the R568 again and temporarily crosses back into Mpumalanga, entering the town of Siyabuswa. The distance from Kwaggafontein to Siyabuswa is 24 kilometres. [1]

Just after Siyabuswa, the R573 crosses back into Limpopo and continues north-east for 30 kilometres to end at a junction with the R33 and N11 national route in Marble Hall, just south of the town centre. [1]

State of Road

The R573 Moloto Road Corridor has been declared as a dangerous road. [2] [3] [4] About 60,000 commuters use this route on a daily basis and it is notorious for claiming lives in accidents. [5] [6] [4]

In July 2015, the Limpopo and Mpumalanga road departments handed over their parts of the road to the South African National Roads Agency (SANRAL). [4] [6] [7] In June 2020, the Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport officially handed over its portion to SANRAL, meaning that the entire route from Pretoria to Marble Hall is now the responsibility of SANRAL. [8] [6] [4] SANRAL started the upgrade of the route in 2016 [9] and is expected to finish the Moloto Road Upgrade Project in 2025. [10]

The upgrades include changing certain intersections into roundabouts as well as turning the route into a dual carriageway. [11] [6] [4] There are also considerations to add a railway following this route. [12] [13] [14] [15] [16]

However, protests over the upgrade and maintenance of this route were still occurring as of September 2020. [17] [18] The group of protesters were protesting at the Union Buildings in Pretoria, claiming that the Moloto Development Corridor (road and rail) is incomplete and that the Finance Minister and Treasury should quickly make the money available for the development corridor. [17] [18] The group of protesters demanded that the railway should be built. [19]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Falkner, John (May 2012). South African Numbered Route Description and Destination Analysis (Report). National Department of Transport. pp. 1–6. Archived from the original on 6 June 2014. Retrieved 27 January 2014.
  2. ↑ Staff Writer. "The most dangerous roads in South Africa – and what makes them so deadly" . Retrieved 1 October 2020.
  3. ↑ "R3.3bn allocated to upgrading dangerous Moloto Road". www.iol.co.za. Retrieved 1 October 2020.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 "Transforming Moloto Road from safety hazard to corridor of opportunity". www.crown.co.za. 30 September 2024. Retrieved 13 May 2025.
  5. ↑ SANRAL (12 December 2023). "R573 Moloto Road upgrades forge ahead". SANRAL Stop Over. Retrieved 13 May 2025.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Moloto Road- SANRAL
  7. ↑ "Gauteng Transport slammed over failure to upgrade killer Moloto road". www.iol.co.za. Retrieved 1 October 2020.
  8. ↑ "Minister Fikile Mbalula: Handover of Gauteng Section of Moloto Road to SANRAL | South African Government". www.gov.za. Retrieved 1 October 2020.
  9. ↑ "'Road of death' to be one of hope". www.iol.co.za. Retrieved 1 October 2020.
  10. ↑ SANRALauthor (4 May 2020). "Moloto Road now a national road". SANRAL Stop Over. Retrieved 1 October 2020.
  11. ↑ "Moloto road in South Africa to receive a US $217m upgrade". Construction Review Online. 28 February 2019. Retrieved 1 October 2020.
  12. ↑ "SANRAL Investing in the environment". stop-over.co.za. Retrieved 13 May 2025.
  13. ↑ Maqhina, Mayibongwe (16 September 2019). "Moloto rail project still awaiting funds before construction can begin". IOL. Retrieved 13 May 2025.
  14. ↑ Maputi, Sibongile (19 April 2022). "Moloto Rail Corridor Still Irks Kwamhlanga Community". Parliament of South Africa. Retrieved 13 May 2025.
  15. ↑ Agency, African News. "Agreement to build the Moloto Rail Development Corridor signed in China". Engineering News. Retrieved 13 May 2025.
  16. ↑ MOLOTO RAIL CORRIDOR ECONOMIC STUDY Final Report - Mpumalanga Provincial Government
  17. 1 2 "Protest over notorious Moloto Road project continues | eNCA". www.enca.com. Retrieved 1 October 2020.
  18. 1 2 Mitchley, Alex. "Moloto 'death trap' road users march to Union Buildings, to demand railway". News24. Retrieved 1 October 2020.
  19. ↑ Schütz, By Elna (12 September 2020). "Protesters call for Moloto Rail Corridor to be built". GroundUp News. Retrieved 13 May 2025.


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