While the reason behind this (Tuesday) morning’s truck blockade affecting John Ross highway traffic in Richards Bay is at this stage unclear, it is believed to be in connection with the issue of foreign truck drivers.
Traffic was initially backed up on the Richards Bay-bound carriageway at the Alton intersection owing to trucks being unable to turn into the road to the port’s west gate via the Bayside smelter.
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One truck was used to block this road to the port, rendering it impassable for all other trucks attempting to make their way to the Port of Richards Bay.
The backed-up trucks on the John Ross were forced to exit the highway at the Hillside off-ramp, where they made U-turns before the smelter to access the alternative route to the port.
As at midday, traffic on the John Ross was flowing and there was a heavy Saps and traffic police presence at the intersection in question.
This incident comes amid ongoing, yet unverified, ‘national shutdown’ calls, and a mass truck blockade on the N3 in the Free State earlier on Tuesday morning.
This is a developing story and the Zululand Observer will update readers should the situation change.
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