Blantyre to have interchange, says minister

Government says plans are on the cards to construct an interchange in Blantyre.

Minister of Transport and Public Works Jacob Hara said this when he toured the stalled K4.6 billion Blantyre bypass road project where he made an assurance of its completion in the soonest time possible.

He said the government is engaging engineers to come up with designs for the interchange, which according to him will be situated where the bypass road will be meeting a main road.

If the dream materializes, Blantyre will be the second city to have an interchange after the capital, Lilongwe.

The 186 Kilometre bypass road which starts from Chigumula to Mpemba through Michiru to Chileka Airport was launched by the former president Peter Muthalika in 2018.

Initial plans indicate that, from Chileka airport the road will proceed to Lunzu – Mapanga – Zomba – Chiradzulu turn – off before connecting Mzedi to Bangwe and come back to Chigumula through Mtenje.

It was supposed to be completed last year, but as it is, it is not clear when the development project will be finished, but once done, the road is expected to address traffic challenges in the city.