Walvis Bay-Ndola-Lubumbashi Development Road

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Trans-Caprivi highway
Map NAM WBCG-Corridors.svg
Corridors in Namibia
Route information
Length2,700 km (1,700 mi)
Location
Country Namibia
Highway system
Namibian military escort through the Caprivi Strip. Caprivi-escort.jpg
Namibian military escort through the Caprivi Strip.

The Walvis Bay-Ndola-Lubumbashi Development Road (previously Trans-Caprivi Corridor and until 2004 Trans-Caprivi-Highway [1] ) runs from Walvis Bay, through Rundu in north eastern Namibia, along the Caprivi Strip to Katima Mulilo on the Zambezi River, which forms the border between Namibia and Zambia. The Katima Mulilo Bridge spans the river to the Zambian town of Sesheke from where a road runs to Livingstone (the M10 Road), joining the main north–south highway to Lusaka, connecting onwards to the Copperbelt.

Contents

The Trans-Caprivi highway is a section of the Walvis Bay Corridor, a trade route linking land-locked Zambia (and neighbouring countries such as DR Congo, Malawi and Zimbabwe) to the Walvis Bay port on the Atlantic Ocean. An example of the function of the corridor as a trade route is that trucks carry copper ore concentrate from the Dikulushi Mine in South-East DR Congo across Zambia and down the Trans-Caprivi highway to the copper smelter at Tsumeb in Namibia. The refined copper is then exported from Namibian ports.

Route

As the name suggests, the corridor starts at Walvis Bay (in Namibia), passes through Ndola (in Zambia) and ends at Lubumbashi (in DR Congo).

The corridor begins in the coastal town of Walvis Bay as the B2 road, heading northwards to the coastal town of Swakopmund (a distance of 35km), where it turns eastwards. It heads eastwards from Swakopmund, through Karibib, to the town of Okahandja (a distance of 290km), where it reaches a junction with the B1 road. At this junction, the B2 ends and the corridor becomes the B1 northwards. The entire section from Walvis Bay to Okahandja is shared with the Trans-Kalahari Corridor.

From Okahandja, it heads northwards as the B1 for 290km, through Otjiwarongo, to the town of Otavi (south-west of Tsumeb), where it reaches a junction with the B8 road. At this junction, the corridor becomes the B8 east-north-east and heads for 345km to the town of Rundu, where it meets the B10 road and becomes the main road through the Caprivi Strip. The section from Okahandja to Otavi is shared with the Tripoli–Cape Town Highway.

The corridor resumes being the B8 road and heads eastwards from Rundu for 510km to the border town of Katima Mulilo, where it crosses the national boundary in a northerly direction to enter Zambia. Immediately after crossing the border, it reaches a junction with Zambia's M10 road. The corridor becomes the M10 and immediately crosses the Zambezi River in a north-easterly direction as the Katima Mulilo Bridge to enter the town of Sesheke.

From Sesheke, the corridor heads eastwards as the M10 for 135km to the small town of Kazungula, where it meets the M19 road (which provides access to the near Kazungula Bridge border with Botswana). From Kazungula, it heads eastwards for 70 kilometres as the M10 to the city of Livingstone (10 km north of the Victoria Falls), where it reaches a junction with the T1 road. At this junction, the M10 ends and the corridor becomes the T1 north-eastwards.

From Livingstone, it heads north-east as the T1 for 420km, through Choma, to reach a junction with the T2 road about 10km south of Kafue. At this junction, the T1 ends and the corridor becomes the T2 northwards. It heads northwards as the T2 for 55km to the city of Lusaka (capital city of Zambia). From Lusaka, it heads northwards as the T2 for 200km, through Kabwe, to Kapiri Mposhi, where it reaches a junction with the T3 road and enters the Copperbelt region. At this junction, the corridor becomes the T3 northwards. The section from Livingstone to Kapiri Mposhi is shared with the Cairo-Cape Town Highway.

From Kapiri Mposhi, it heads northwards as the T3 for 170km, through the city of Ndola, to the city of Kitwe. From Kitwe, it heads northwards for 90km, through Chingola, to the border town of Kasumbalesa, where it crosses the national boundary in a northerly direction to enter DR Congo and become the N1 route. From Kasumbalesa, the corridor heads north-north-west as the N1 route for 100 kilometres to the city of Lubumbashi. The section from Kafue (south of Lusaka) to Lubumbashi is shared with the Beira–Lobito Highway.

See also

Related Research Articles

This article is about the Transport in Zambia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Livingstone, Zambia</span> Place in Southern Province, Zambia

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kapiri Mposhi</span> Town in Central, Zambia

Kapiri Mposhi is a Zambian town and the seat of the Kapiri Mposhi District in Central Province. Located north of Lusaka, it stands on the Great North Road and is significant for the railway connection between the Zambia Railways line from Kitwe to Lusaka and the western terminus of the Tanzania-Zambia Railway Authority from Dar es Salaam since 1976.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Katima Mulilo</span> Town in Zambezi Region, Namibia

Katima Mulilo or simply Katima is the capital of the Zambezi Region in Namibia. It had 28,362 inhabitants in 2010, and comprises two electoral constituencies, Katima Mulilo Rural and Katima Mulilo Urban. It is located on the B8 national road on the banks of the Zambezi River in the Caprivi Strip in lush riverine vegetation with tropical birds and monkeys. The town receives annual average rainfall of 654 millimetres (25.7 in).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sesheke</span> Place in Western Province, Zambia

Sesheke is a border town in the Western Province of Zambia, in a district of the same name. It lies on the northern bank of the Zambezi River which forms the border with Namibia's Caprivi Strip at that point.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kazungula</span> Human settlement in Zambia

Kazungula is a small border town in Zambia, lying on the north bank of the Zambezi River about 70 kilometres (45 mi) west of Livingstone on the M10 Road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great North Road, Zambia</span> Road in Zambia

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Katima Mulilo Bridge</span> Bridge in Sesheke, Zambia

The Katima Mulilo Bridge carries the TransCaprivi Highway over the Zambezi River between Katima Mulilo, Namibia and Sesheke, Zambia. It is a road bridge, completed in 2004, 900 metres long and with 19 spans. It links Namibia's Trans–Caprivi Highway to the Zambian road network, forming a section of the trade route from south-central Africa to the Atlantic known as the Walvis Bay Corridor. It also carries tourist traffic.

The Trans-Kalahari Corridor is a paved highway corridor that provides a direct route from the port of Walvis Bay and Windhoek in central Namibia, through Botswana, to Pretoria in Gauteng province in South Africa. It initially cost approximately 850 million Namibian dollars and was officially opened in 1998.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kazungula Ferry</span> Pontoon ferry across the Zambezi River

The Kazungula Ferry was a pontoon ferry across the 400-metre-wide (1,300 ft) Zambezi River between Botswana and Zambia. It was one of the largest ferries in south-central Africa, having a capacity of 70 tonnes. The service was provided by two motorised pontoons and operated between border posts at Kazungula, Zambia and Kazungula, Botswana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beira–Lobito Highway</span> Road in Africa

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">B8 road (Namibia)</span> National highway of Namibia

B8 road often known as the Golden Highway is one of the national highways of Namibia. It leads from the B1 at Otavi via Grootfontein and Rundu through the Caprivi Strip to the border town of Katima Mulilo and further on to the Botswana border at Ngoma. The section from Otavi to Katima Mulilo forms part of the Walvis Bay-Ndola-Lubumbashi Development Road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lusaka–Livingstone Road</span> Road in Zambia

The T1 or Lusaka–Livingstone Road is the main highway of the Southern Province of Zambia. It begins 55 kilometres south of the city of Lusaka and heads south-west to the principal tourist destination, Victoria Falls in Livingstone, via Mazabuka, Monze, Choma and Kalomo, measuring approximately 430 kilometres (267 mi). The entire route is part of Trans-African Highway network number 4 or Cairo-Cape Town Highway between Cairo and Cape Town.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vehicle registration plates of Namibia</span> Namibia vehicle license plates

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">B1 road (Namibia)</span> National highway of Namibia

The B1 is a national highway of Namibia, and is the country's longest and most significant road, running the length of the country from south to north. It connects Noordoewer in the south on the South African border with Oshikango in the north on the Angolan border via Namibia's capital city Windhoek.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">T2 road (Zambia)</span> Road in Zambia

The T2 is a trunk road in Zambia. The road runs from the Tunduma border with Tanzania via Mpika, Kabwe and Lusaka to the Chirundu border with Zimbabwe. The road is the longest route of the country, as it is approximately 1,155 kilometres (718 mi). The route from Mpika to Kafue is a toll road. The route from Tanzania to Lusaka is Zambia's Great North Road and is part of the Tanzam Highway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">T3 road (Zambia)</span> Road in Zambia

The T3 is a Trunk Road in Zambia. The road runs from Kapiri Mposhi via Ndola, Kitwe and Chingola to Kasumbalesa on the border with DR Congo. The entire route is a toll road.

The M10 road is a road in Zambia. It goes from Livingstone, through Sesheke and Senanga, to Mongu. The road is approximately 508 kilometres and follows the Zambezi River for its entire length.

The M1 road is a road in northern Zambia. It connects Mpika in Muchinga Province with Mbala in the Northern Province on the border with Tanzania and the Lake Tanganyika port of Mpulungu via Kasama. The northern section is a toll road.

References

  1. Trans-Caprivi Corridor. Walvis Bay Corridor Group, Date unknown at the Wayback Machine (archived December 24, 2013), accessed on 27 August 2014.