Part of N3 northbound opened to traffic after truck crash

Hours after an advisory from the South African National Roads Agency (Sanral) cautioning motorists travelling between Pietermaritzburg and Durban to avoid the N3 northbound lane near Ashburton, at least one lane has re-opened to traffic.

According to a report by The Witness, the northbound lane on the N3 remained open despite yet another accident between two trucks that happened on Saturday morning. No injuries were reported.

Road Traffic Inspectorate (RTI) spokesperson, Zinhle Mali told the publication that the lane that re-opened on Saturday morning would remain open due to the fact that Saturday morning’s accident did not affect the flow of traffic.

East Coast Radio reports that both lanes on the N3 near Ashburton were closed on Friday evening after a tanker transporting liquified petroleum gas overturned. 

A 1-kilometre exclusion zone was put in place by fire officials shortly after the accident. At the time, traffic was being diverted to the R103. 

The Witness further reports that officials were still busy with the recovery of the truck early on Saturday morning. 

As of Saturday morning, the vent valve on the tanker was still blowing off and officials estimated that at least one lane on the N3 would be closed for most of the day.

As a result of the traffic diversion, the R103 is heavily backed up. Some motorists are reported to have found somewhere to park on the side of the road as they wait for traffic to start moving again. 

The Witness reports the residents of the area are sharing alternative routes with each other in Whatsapp groups and alerting travellers to account for the increased travel time. 

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Compiled by Kaunda Selisho