March 2011

$4,160,160

Completed

Balkh

RC-North

Project Description

The Deh Dadi Governor has asked for a 5.3 mile section of dirt and mud road that connects the large and growing town of Deh Dadi to the city of Mazar-e-Sharif to be paved. It is a dirt road that was poorly constructed and cannot be maintained in its current state. It is littered with potholes, rain runoff streams, and poor drainage ditching to avoid erosion. A portion of the road has breached the metal casing over a culvert and will eventually collapse into the culvert below. With an asphalt road it would take no more than 10 minutes to travel this route; yet, as it currently stands, most patrons cannot do it in less than 30-40 minutes with significant wear-and-tear to their personal vehicles added in. This project is to construct a sustainable asphalt road 5.3 miles in length that will connect the growing city of Deh Dadi with the booming city of Mazar-e-Sharif.

Project Goals

The economic reasons for this project are most evident when inspecting the surrounding area. Access to markets, significant improvement to current traffic patterns, viable access to the Mazar-e-Sharif Airport, emergency response times to and from the Mazar-e-Sharif Hospital, and growing the economic scope of the area are just a few of the advantages to providing the people of Balkh with an asphalt road connecting the two cities. When attempting to travel from Deh Dadi, the people of the area are often forced to find alternate routes when trying to participate in the economy of Mazar-e-Sharif or travel to the Mazar-e-Sharif Airport. The city of Deh Dadi, a district with a growing population, has only a limited access to the growing and prospering markets and industries located in Mazar-e-Sharif, a metropolitan area with a population of more than 350,000. Connecting these two growing markets will increase the availability of goods and services, allow farmers to more easily move produce to market, promote competition, and increase the standard of living for both cities. The people of Deh Dadi are looking for ways to prosper as a city, and have asked us to pave this road as it would greatly enhance their capability of doing so. Successful economies in developing areas are achieved when the principle of expansion is combined with the principle of connectivity to adjacent areas (access to markets). It is this combination which will lead to a higher affluence in this area of Balkh Province. Paving this roadway would also relieve the stress currently placed upon the existing roadways leading into and around Mazar-e-Sharif. Traffic is currently a constant problem and these highly-traveled routes could be relaxed as locals would be able to use a new, high-speed route into the city. This would increase efficiency of local businesses, increase shipping capabilities, allow for better transportation of students to their respective schools (there are several schools located along or adjacent to this route). A secondary benefit of the project will allow for better emergency response from the area's healthcare facilities, should it be needed for the thousands of people living along this stretch of dirt road. This project will be completely integrated with the GIRoA ministries and organizations, which will highlight the GIRoA as a legitimate authority within the country. Comments: The route identified by this project is currently deteriorating and almost completely usable by the local population. After several inspections conducted by USACE engineers, it has been determined that the most effective and durable method for repairing the current condition is paving the roadway. This course of action will provide the people of the area with a sustainable roadway that will maintain its efficiency and value long after ISAF Forces have departed Balkh Province. The US Corps of Engineers will be contracted for this project and will have full responsibility over QA/QC for the road. Also, the Governor of Balkh Province has committed in writing to the upkeep and maintenance of the roadway once the project is complete.

Results

Results unknown.

Updates

19 Aug 13 Uploaded USACE DD1354, Transfer and Acceptance of DoD Real Property, for the acceptance and transfer of the final road constructed for this project.

22 Jun 13 Uploaded closing documentation and closed project

23 May 13 Uploaded TOA docs.

3/1/2013 Publish to try and Push to SIPR

1-10-13 USACE states 95% Cmplete

27 Jun 11

USACE Awarded Contract 24 May 11 after several months of delays.

NTP given 23 Jun 11

Tenative schedule attached under media

As of 27 Jun no work has begun

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16 DEC 11

TOA documents loaded in media

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9 APR 12

All levels of reponsability transfered to USACE. TOA documents uploaded into media

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