By Kaya 959 Reporter
Traffic is flowing freely on the N3 Toll Route on Wednesday morning after a truck drivers’ protest caused massive traffic delays between Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal on Tuesday.
The N3 Toll Concession says traffic has cleared between Cedara and Heidelberg.
05h12 27/10 #N3Traffic: There are currently no reported incidents disrupting the flow of traffic along the #N3TollRoute between Cedara I/C 96 and Heidelberg South I/C 59. Thank you for sharing the road responsibly. Please drive safely. #BuckleUp
— N3 Toll Concession (@N3Route) October 27, 2021
“The scene between Swinburne and Montrose where a load of manganese was dropped in the southbound lanes, was cleared in the early hours of Wednesday morning,” says N3TC operations manager, Thania Dhoogra.
Trucks were lined up on the N3 near Balmoral in the Free State on Tuesday.
Dhoogra says trucks were stacked at the scene while light motor vehicles were allowed to move through a single lane.
ALSO READ: N3 upgrade expected to lessen travel time between Gauteng and Durban
WARNING: N3 STILL BLOCKED!
26 October 2021: 05H20 — Truck drivers are obstructing the @N3Route in both directions near Montrose (at N3-7X Km 13). Law enforcement has been deployed and are currently monitoring the situation. AVOID THE AREA.
@ pic.twitter.com/xa81ejtAyP— FOCUS on Transport (@FOCUSmagSA) October 26, 2021
Highway police patrol vehicles and Road Traffic Inspectorate officials were at the scene. The highway was also affected at Montrose.
Calls for calm
The Road Freight Association (RFA) has called for calm after the protest.
The protest stems from ongoing grievances with local drivers on the employment of foreign truckers at logistics companies.
RFA CEO Gavin Kelly calls on police and transport officials to use their appointed peace officers to ensure that roadways remain open.
“The continual attack on the logistics supply chain and the willful disregard by sectors who continue to drive agendas outside the collective bargaining structure, or to further their grievances by attacking the law-abiding citizenry, must be brought to a stop
Kelly says the government has promised to resolve the matter of illegal foreigners for years but has not done so.
“Transporters and freight operators who abide by the collective agreement signed with the representatives of truck drivers and unions are targeted time and again without reason,” he adds.
Several trucks blocked off part of the N10 near Middleburg at the weekend. The truck drivers refused to leave the area until their demands were met.
Ministers Thulas Nxesi and Fikile Mbalula met with the angry drivers. Officials later opened to the roadway traffic.



