This is a mandatory passage with no alternative route connecting Tana-Mahajanga. Installation work on the Bailey bridge at Berivotra, on national road number 4, will block traffic for 36 hours on September 1st and 2nd. This postponement is causing significant frustration among road users and transporters, whose travel schedules have been completely disrupted. Originally scheduled from Saturday, August 30th at 7 a.m. to Sunday, August 31st at 7 p.m., the complete closure of the Berivotra bridge (KM 520+010) has been rescheduled to Tuesday, September 1st and Wednesday, September 2nd, 2026. According to a statement from the Ministry of Public Works, this schedule change is motivated by "particular organizational reasons" for the temporary assembly of the metal "Bailey" structure. This construction site, located in the municipality of Antanambao Andranolava, Marovoay district, remains crucial for rehabilitating this strategic axis connecting the capital to the City of Flowers. This bridge is a mandatory passage with no alternative road route between Tana and Mahajanga.
Anger
This emergency postponement is causing significant anger among users of national road number 4, caught off guard by this organizational change. Vacationers during peak season and business professionals have had to revise their plans, canceling or rescheduling hotel reservations and minibus tickets at their own expense. "We had planned our vacation down to the minute to avoid the initial weekend closure. This last-minute postponement completely ruins our Mahajanga reservations," laments Nirina, a distressed father at the Maki parking lot. The same sentiment from Herizo, a consultant on assignment: "My professional meetings scheduled for Tuesday are canceled. These unforeseen postponements cause direct financial losses that no one will reimburse us for." Facing the inconvenience caused by the complete lockdown of this major axis between September 1st at 7 a.m. and September 2nd at 7 p.m., the Ministry of Public Works has apologized to transporters and travelers for the disruption caused.