They choose the alternative route to avoid the mountainous by-pass between Louis Trichardt and Musina on the N1. Traffic volumes on the N1 are steadily increasing ahead of Christmas Day.

"Normally we avoid the mountain. You will find that some other trucks have breakdowns, some have failing brakes. That is why we use this road; this one is flat. It is not that we are avoiding the tollgates. This road, as you can see, does not have too much traffic, and for us driving trucks, in terms of fuel consumption, it is quite efficient. We use less fuel when we use this road. That road is dangerous; anything can happen if you fail to engage the gears, you will have a problem," explained Innocent Chikomo and Tapiwa Nashe, who are transporting cargo to Zimbabwe and Zambia.

--SABC/ChannelAfrica--