Angola

A city in transformation

Roadworks are changing the look and daily life of Luanda

written by: Sérgio Bourroul
photo by: Roberto Rosa

Visitors arriving in Luanda will see numerous signs that roadworks are underway on its boulevards, streets and byways. The work being done to improve traffic in Angola’s capital city are the highlight of that nation’s investments in infrastructure and go far beyond just building and paving access roads. They also include building highways and avenues, urban development in several districts, sanitation, drainage, trash collection, landscaping, road signs and signaling, public lighting, traffic safety education and other projects focused on easing traffic jams, boosting tourism and regaining the city’s pride and quality of life. As they drive along the congested streets of Luanda, visitors will also notice that Odebrecht is strongly present there.

City Center–Luanda Sul Connection
The main hub for the city’s growth is Luanda Sul, the southern area where new apartment and office buildings are being built, in addition to the country’s only shopping mall. Samba and 21 de Janeiro avenues, which respectively connect the south of the city with the downtown area and 4 de Julho Airport, are being refurbished through the Luanda Basic Sanitation Program, under a contract with the National Directorate of Public Infrastructure, an agency of the Ministry of Public Works. The visible side of these projects (building and widening roads, paving, installing median strips and public lighting, building sidewalks and installing road signs and signaling) hides the main feature that sets this program apart: the construction of macrodrainage ditches to collect stormwater and ensure the conservation and durability of the roadworks.

Another innovation, by local standards, is the introduction of systems of underground pipes for the installation of phone and power lines and water conduits beneath the sidewalks. “This will enable public concession companies to install their future systems without damaging the roads and sidewalks,” explains Odebrecht Project Director Pedro Pinheiro.

Pedro is also responsible for two more projects that are currently underway. Flanked by the city’s two main thoroughfares, 21 de Janeiro and Ho Chi Minh avenues, the Mártires do Kifagondo district is a heavily populated area with numerous homes and businesses that lack sewer systems and other basic services. Scheduled for completion by 2010, the work being done to rehabilitate this area has been making temporary changes in the local population’s daily routine, such as traffic diversions and the rumbling of heavy machinery.

“The Works Department in the Province of Luanda, our client, considered Odebrecht’s experience in communication with the community to be a crucial factor for the successful execution of this complex project. The public understands that the benefits will make up for the minor headaches involved,” says Pedro Pinheiro. The company’s teams are installing stormwater and sewer systems, telephone infrastructure, public lighting, paving, road signs and signaling, as well as landscaping the area. The third project Pedro manages is nearby: the expansion of the parking lot and taxiway for Luanda International Airport.

Expressways
Another aspect of the work being done in the Angolan capital is the Expressways Project, which includes construction of routes in outlying districts of Luanda that will be used to speed up the transportation of the wealth generated by the nation’s reconstruction. This USD 900-million project includes six roadways in all, totaling 68 km. The client is the Angola Roadways Institute, an agency of the Ministry of Public Works. The biggest project is nearing completion: the 33-km Luanda Beltway, which transects three radial routes and facilitates access to the city. According to Project Director Tiago Britto, the biggest challenge on this project is logistics. “We import most of the construction materials, including steel, asphalt, posts, lighting, power lines, equipment parts and even cement, which increases costs. We also have to redouble our efforts when it comes to inventory planning.”

In order to keep track of the fleet of trucks, the project’s management team has introduced a modern monitoring system. Imported from the United States and installed in the central jobsite in Camama, it uses a GPS system to follow the comings and goings of the 130 trucks that transport crushed rock every day from the Cabuledo crushing plant, 120 km from Luanda. “In addition to increasing the security of our drivers, the Iris system controls vehicle speed and the way the entire fleet is used. That enables us to economize on fuel and tires and lets us know if drivers deviate from their routes,” explains Tiago.

"Vias de Luanda"
The “Vias de Luanda” project goes well beyond engineering and construction works. It involves urban development projects that are revitalizing the city’s main thoroughfares, making them more people-friendly by using artistic elements commonly found in the local culture, as well as plenty of greenery, parks and recreational areas, and infrastructure facilities. Thirty-six kilometers of urban roadways are being restored through this project, which began in April 2008, starting with Deolinda Rodrigues, Ho Chi Minh, Samba, Amilcar Cabral and Revolução de Outubro avenues. Over 2,500 workers paved roads, laid sidewalks, and installed gardens, drainage ditches, road signs and signaling and underground systems (sewer, water, power and phone lines).

Boulevards and plazas have received a facelift through landscaping, sidewalks, playing courts and arbors designed by the firm of Brazilian architect Jaime Lerner. Typically Angolan elements were used as models for decorating the sidewalks with stone mosaics inspired by the nation’s sisal tapestries. They are now brand-new symbols of the city.

The Bem-me-Quer (Loves Me Well) Program educated the public about traffic safety and good citizenship while the construction work went on, with a focus on how best to use and preserve the new facilities being built. In addition to local programs near the roadworks, a TV campaign sought to involve the public and raise awareness about the importance of “Vias de Luanda,” which also includes public sanitation activities.

Roadworks in Luanda

Project Director Marcos Rabello stresses that the highlights of this project are its esthetics and the communication, educational and maintenance programs specifically requested by the Provincial Government of Luanda. Another side of the project involves tourism development on Murtala Mohamed Ave., on Luanda Island. An area with tremendous tourist potential and views of the Atlantic on one side and downtown Luanda on the other, the island and its main thoroughfare are being revitalized with tree-shaded sidewalks and bicycle paths, as well as security, leisure, sports and parking facilities. A small forest will be restored and transformed into the city’s botanical garden. “Luanda needs more than just infrastructure. It is also time to modernize the city and focus on the public in this context,” says Rabello.