The 22km stretch of N2 between the Mthatha River bridge and the Vidgesville junction must be one of the most treacherous in SA to negotiate. On a good day it takes about 35 minutes in either direction, but generally it can take up to an hour. This is due to a combination of potholes, traffic congestion, reckless driving, livestock and mountain-sized speed bumps, often near the worst potholes.

Alongside the same N2 is a railway line that can no longer be used because communities have sprung up on either side of it. Transnet stopped using the line more than two decades ago. Another reason for the congestion on the N2 is long-distance trucks ferrying goods, instead of them being carried on trains.

The Vidgesville junction is mainly a turn-off to a part of the Eastern Cape Wild Coast — Coffee Bay, Hole-in-the-Wall, Haven and other peerlessly beautiful tourism real estate. The poor state of the 75km stretch of “tarred” road has to be seen to be believed. It is the stuff of movies. In some areas it is better to leave the road entirely to avoid deep potholes that have shredded tyres and damaged cars for years...