The key N3 toll road at Van Reenen’s Pass in the Drakensberg has been shut after two fatal crashes involving multiple vehicles.
Authorities have cautioned motorists to avoid using the highway which links Johannesburg to Durban and is usually busy this time of the year as inland holidaymakers make their way to South Africa’s east coast.
The N3 Toll Concession (N3TC) said in a statement: “Two multi-vehicle crashes with fatalities at Van Reenen, between Harrismith and Ladysmith, are causing severe traffic congestion along this section of the N3 Toll Route. The entire road had to be closed for recovery.
“At the top of Van Reenen’s Pass, in a southbound direction, a four-kilometre diesel spill is compounding the traffic problems currently being experienced.
“Mop up operations are underway – all resources have been deployed, and good progress is being made, but it is expected to take a few hours before the entire route can be cleared and re-opened to traffic.”
The N3TC, which manages the N3 toll route between Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal, strongly advised motorists to either delay their journeys or to make use of the R74 (Oliviershoek Pass) as an alternative route.
