Ongoing work at Kuburi Haboba of Juba as of 6th Jan. 2022. Photo credit: Curtesy

The government is appealing to street vendors using part of Kuburi Habuba road as market, and motorists to vacate the area, ahead of the official opening of the bridge next week.

The Undersecretary in the Ministry of Roads and Bridges told the media Wednesday, the bridge will be inaugurated by President Salva Kiir next week.

Peter Kuot Jel said the government wants the area vacated by commuters and roadside sellers ahead of its commissioning by the president.

“From today onward we are telling the public that this road must be open and nobody is allowed to use part of the road as the market or parking yard for the commuters and all the bushes that are there,”he said.

“We want to open this bridge, we want clean the entire area so that it is ready for the President to officially open this place on the 23rd,” he added.

On Wednesday, Habuba and Luri bridges were opened to road users.

The two bridges have been under construction from a Chinese company in partnership with the ARC Resource Cooperation, since last year.

The Luri Bridge, which connects Juba to the western part of the country reportedly collapsed in 2012 and ever since, it floods whenever it rains.

Crossing the Luri Bridge had become highly risky during the rainy season, and has so far claimed a score of death, mainly from passenger cars plunging into the river.

For his part the Central Equatoria State Minister of Roads and Bridges, Mawa A. Moses advised the public against encroaching on the road in order to ease the burden of traffic.

“His Excellency the governor has directed that we go to the site and inform our people to officially leave selling their goads on the road side because this is a road it is not a market once they leave it, it open up the traffic for people to travel,” he said.

“Also today we are going to make sure that the bridge will be open for public use and this will benefit all the people in Juba city, Juba county and South Sudan as a whole,” said Minister Moses.

The Commissioner of Juba County also directed administrators and payam directors to evacuate roadside sellers from the new bridge ahead of its inauguration.

Most of the streets of Juba are packed with vendors, mainly low income families making a living by selling groceries, juice and other items.