The Department of Transport in South Africa and its Botswana counterparts are in ongoing discussions to relocate the Groblersbrug border post following sustained bottlenecks as cargo volumes previously routed through the Beitbridge border with Zimbabwe now use the exit point to avoid extra charges on the Zimbabwean side.
The bottlenecks, heightened by a spike in demand for acid at mines in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Zambia, have resulted in an increase of dangerous cargo hauliers heading to the border.
Operators are of the view that the border does not have capacity to cope with sudden spikes in truck traffic, which has become the norm because of cross-border transporters preferring to avoid the North-South route through Zimbabwe.
This is while trucks carrying general cargo, refrigerated goods, break bulk and hazardous chemicals, all heading to the Copperbelt, are arriving at the border at a rate exceeding the capacity of authorities to control the queue.
The Border Management Authority (BMA) in early December 2025 announced that they would extend operating hours at various land borders to accommodate tourism, among other things. But supply chain service providers using well-trafficked access ways like the Groblersbrug border post into Botswana were not impressed.
The Department of Transport has confirmed through the Cross Border Road Agency (C-BRTA) that there has been a shift in freight traffic volumes from Beitbridge to Groblersbrug, and this is partly caused by the introduction of extra charges at Beitbridge, on the Zimbabwe side.
Departmental spokesperson, Amanda Hlahleni, on Monday said the shift had caused a significant traffic increase at Groblersbrug, which is now being increasingly used as a transit port to the rest of the region.
Hlahleni said from an infrastructure perspective, Groblersbrug remains challenged as it was not designed for huge volumes of traffic, and has a single-lane bridge that accommodates minimal flows of traffic across the border.
She said the infrastructure issue remains the biggest challenge that leads to congestion and delays at the port, and if there are heavy rains, the port often floods, which then compels the border to be closed for weeks.
As a result, traffic usually gets diverted to alternative ports like Kopfontein, Skilpadshek, and Ramatlabama.
“This is a challenge that the country is grappling with, and efforts are being made to explore solutions like infrastructure upgrades to the port,” Hlahleni said.
“The Republic of South Africa, through the Department of Transport, has been in discussions with the Botswana counterparts, under the leadership of the two honourable ministers, to explore a long-lasting solution to this challenge, and that includes exploring the relocation of the port. Discussions are ongoing.”
Stakeholders, the Transit Atlantic Bureau and the Trans-Africa Border Hub, have suggested that the border’s hours should be constantly running on a 24-hour basis.
“They should know by now how busy the border gets during this time of year, and should have Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) in place. Yet every year it becomes apparent how the lack of SOPs at this border causes congestion,” said Trans Atlantic Bureau’s Mike Fitzmaurice.
Fitzmaurice, along with Kage Barnett of the Trans-Africa Border Hub, advocates for more personnel to be deployed on a consistent basis to assist with truck management and precleared cargo compliance.
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