M18 road (Zambia)

The M18 Road is a road in Zambia that connects Kitwe in the Copperbelt Province with Kasempa in the North-Western Province via Kalulushi and Lufwanyama.[1][2] It is the only other road after the T5 Road that connects the towns of the North-Western and Copperbelt provinces. The section from Kitwe to Kalulushi is designated as the M7 Road[2][1] while the remainder of the route from Kalulushi westwards is designated as the M18 Road on Zambia's road network.[1][2]

M18 Road shield
M18 Road
Route information
Length260 km (160 mi)
Major junctions
East end T3 in Kitwe
Major intersections M16 near Kalulushi
West end M8 near Kasempa
Location
CountryZambia
Highway system
← M16→ M19

M7 road
M7 Road shield
M7 Road
Route information
Length15 km (9.3 mi)
Major junctions
East end T3 in Kitwe
Major intersections M18 near Kalulushi
M16 in Kalulushi
West endKalulushi Central
Location
CountryZambia
ProvincesCopperbelt
Major citiesKitwe, Kalulushi
Highway system
← M6→ M8

The M7 begins in the commercial city centre of Kitwe, at a roundabout junction with the T3 Road (Independence Avenue) from Chingola in the north-west and Ndola in the south-east. It begins by going westwards as Kanyanta Road up to the Mindolo Road junction, where it becomes Mindolo Road towards the north-west. At the second left turn, the M7 turns westwards and goes for 6 kilometres to reach a junction with the M18 Road east of Kalulushi. From the M18 junction, the M7 goes westwards for another 6 kilometres, meeting the southern terminus of the M16 Road (which connects to Chambishi), to end in Kalulushi Central.[1][2]

M18 road
M18 Road shield
M18 Road
Route information
Length251 km (156 mi)
Major junctions
East end M7 near Kalulushi
West end M8 near Kasempa
Location
CountryZambia
ProvincesCopperbelt, North-Western
Highway system
← M16→ M19

From the M7 junction east of Kalulushi, the M18 starts by going southwards for a few metres before turning westwards to separate Kalulushi Central from the southern part of the town, where it meets a road to Southdowns Airport. From Kalulushi, the M18 goes westwards for 245 kilometres, through the rural town of Lufwanyama, crossing into the North-Western Province, to reach its western terminus at a junction with the M8 Road in the settlement named Kawana in Kasempa District (60 kilometres north of Kasempa), with the M8 providing access to the towns of Kasempa and Kabompo in the south (& Solwezi in the north).[1][2]

Route for trucks

In order for heavy vehicles coming from Ndola and Lusaka (using the T3 Road) to avoid the Kitwe City Centre and Kitwe's northern suburbs (which are busy commercial areas) on the way to DR Congo via Chingola, trucks are advised to use the M7 Road from Kitwe to Kalulushi, then the M16 Road from Kalulushi to Chambishi, as an alternative route.[3] Just before Chambishi, heavy vehicles rejoin the main road and proceed through Chingola to the DR Congo Border (Kasumbalesa).

See also

References
  1. "Roads and Road Traffic (Amendment) Act, Cap 464 | Zambia Legal Information Institute". zambialii.org. Retrieved 2019-07-03.
  2. "Roads and Road Traffic Act | National Assembly of Zambia". www.parliament.gov.zm. Retrieved 2022-06-27.
  3. "Report of the committee on Transport, works and aupply for the first session of the 13th National Assembly" (PDF). National Assembly of Zambia. Retrieved 27 May 2023.
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