By Princess Eugene Majuru, Princess of Harare
HARARE — It was supposed to be the definitive answer to Harare’s most notorious traffic headache. When the Trabablas Interchange (formerly Mbudzi Roundabout) was officially commissioned in May 2025, it was hailed as a world-class engineering marvel—a three-tier symbol of Zimbabwe’s “Vision 2030.”
Yet, just 10 months later, the celebration has been replaced by a familiar sight: a massive pothole. With motorists now forced to dodge craters on a “brand new” $114 million structure, the question isn’t just how this happened, but who is responsible.
The Anatomy of a Premature Failure
For a road to develop significant structural defects within its first year, something has gone fundamentally wrong beneath the surface. Engineering experts suggest that the “pothole plague” at Trabablas is likely the result of a “perfect storm” of technical lapses.
1. Poor Drainage: The Silent Killer
In road construction, water is the ultimate enemy. If the drainage systems—which reportedly cost a portion of the $65.5 million core infrastructure budget—are blocked or poorly graded, water seeps into the sub-base. Once the foundation is saturated, the asphalt “floats” and collapses under the weight of heavy haulage trucks, creating a pothole in a matter of days.
2. Sub-standard Compaction
The Mbudzi area sits on complex soil. If the layers of earth and stone beneath the asphalt were not compacted to the required density, the road surface “flexes” every time a vehicle passes over it. Over 10 months of heavy traffic, this flexing causes fatigue in the bitumen, leading to the cracks we see today.
3. The “Fast-Track” Curse
The project faced significant delays due to compensation disputes, yet there was immense political pressure to open the interchange by mid-2025. When deadlines are chased aggressively, “curing times” for materials are often squeezed. If the asphalt was laid during a wet spell or before the base layer had fully settled, the bond between layers is compromised from day one.
A Price Tag Under Fire
The emergence of these defects has reignited a fierce debate over the project’s cost. Originally budgeted at $88 million, the final figure reportedly ballooned to $114 million—including $16 million for bridges and $26 million for property compensation.
“Zimbabweans pay repeatedly for infrastructure through toll gates and fuel levies,” noted a recent report by the Zim Now news agency. “To see a $114 million project crumble before its first anniversary feels like a betrayal of the taxpayer.”
Project Component Allocated Cost (USD)
Core Infrastructure (Roads/Drainage) $65.5 Million
Bridges (12-15 structures) $16 Million
Relocation & Compensation $26 Million
Total Reported Cost $114 Million
Who is to Blame?
The project was executed by TEFOMA, a consortium of local giants: Tensor Systems, Fossil Contracting, and Masimba Construction. While the government has championed the “Built by Zimbabweans” mantra, the current state of the road puts the consortium’s quality control under the microscope.
ZINARA and the Ministry of Transport have recently called for a “thorough assessment,” but for the thousands of motorists who navigate the interchange daily, the technical excuses matter less than the reality on the ground. A road that costs over $100 million shouldn’t need a “hotline” for repairs before its first birthday.
The Road Ahead
If the Trabablas Interchange is to be saved from becoming a very expensive monument to inefficiency, the “patch-and-hope” method won’t work. The Ministry must hold the contractors to their performance bonds, ensuring that the repairs are done at the contractor’s expense, not the public’s.
Until then, the “crown jewel” of Harare’s roads remains a cautionary tale: in the world of civil engineering, there are no shortcuts—only long, expensive detours.
Pothole at Trabablas ( image credit 263Chat)
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