Durban motorists can expect traffic interruptions over the next two to three months, as critical work on the R250 million Northern Aqueduct Augmentation (NAA) project continues.

Ednick Msweli, head of eThekwini Water and Sanitation (EWS) says that although a large portion of the pipeline has been routed through sugar cane fields, a critical portion does traverse busy residential areas, crossing busy thoroughfares.

He said that the two main contracts that fall under the larger NAA will be completed by the end of this year.

These include a 6km section of the pipeline that begins at Duffs Road and ends at the Phoenix 2 reservoir and a 22 km segment of the pipeline that stretches from the Phoenix 2 Reservoir in Phoenix, continues to Waterloo and then to Umhlanga with a feed to the planned new Blackburn reservoir.

Martin Bright, project manager for the NAA, said that the actual construction of these two contracts were complex with special measures being taken to accommodate residents, preserve environmentally sensitive flora and rehabilitate excavation sites.

As a result, he said that motorists could expect traffic interruptions over the next two months along Phoenix Highway, Longbury Drive and in the Waterloo area.