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| Route information | ||||
| Maintained bySANRAL andGDRT | ||||
| Length | 67.6 km (42.0 mi) | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| North end |    M5 /M7 /M18 inPretoria | |||
| Major intersections |  N1 inCenturion R25 nearTembisa R23 nearKempton Park R24 atOR Tambo Int'l N12 nearBoksburg R29 in Boksburg N17 near Boksburg | |||
| South end |  N3 atVosloorus | |||
| Location | ||||
| Country | South Africa | |||
| Provinces | Gauteng | |||
| Major cities | ||||
| Highway system | ||||
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TheR21 is a major north–southprovincial route (with a freeway portion designated as aNational Road) in easternGauteng Province,South Africa.[1][2] Built in the early 1970s, it remains one of two freeways (the other being the N1) linking Pretoria with Johannesburg, via the R24. As the eastern of the two freeways, it links thePretoria city centre withOR Tambo International Airport andBoksburg.[2] Between the Solomon Mahlangu Drive on-ramp inMonument Park, Pretoria, and theN12 interchange in Boksburg, the R21 is an 8 lanehighway andmotorway (freeway), with 4 lanes in each direction.[3] It has off-ramps leading toIrene,Olifantsfontein,Benoni, andKempton Park. The route intersects theN1 highway (Eastern Pretoria Bypass; Danie Joubert Freeway) nearCenturion, theR24 near the airport, the N12 andN17 in Boksburg, and theN3 nearVosloorus on theEast Rand, where it ends. The section from the N12 to the N3 is not a freeway.[2] The R21 is also designated as the P157.[1]
The R21 is the lowest "R" designated route number in South Africa.[2] The portion of the R21 where it exists as a freeway, from the M10 Solomon Mahlangu Drive off-ramp in Pretoria to the N12 Freeway in the East Rand was declared a National Road in 2008, as part of theGauteng Freeway Improvement Project,[4] when it was also transferred to theSouth African National Roads Agency.[4] The improvement project increased the number of lanes (previously, the freeway portion had been a dual carriageway freeway, with 2 lanes in each direction, from the Rietfontein Interchange to Pretoria), and installed lighting along the length of the freeway section.
As a result of the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project, the freeway section of the R21 was effectively declared as ane-toll highway (withopen road tolling) from 3 December 2013 onwards.[5] The South African government announced on 28 March 2024[6] that e-tolls in Gauteng would officially be shut down on 11 April 2024 at midnight,[7][8] therefore returning the R21 to being a toll-free route.
The R21 begins just north-east ofFountains Valley inPretoria as Nelson Mandela Drive, at a roundabout intersection with theM18 Christina De Wit Avenue,M7 andM5metropolitan roads of Pretoria, heading south-east. After Fountains Valley, the R21 passes byMonument Park. After Monument Park, the R21 becomes a freeway (separating the city ofCenturion to the west from Pretoria East to the east), with the first off-ramp being theM10 (Solomon Mahlangu Drive) east of theWaterkloof Air Force Base.[2]
Just after Solomon Mahlangu Drive, near the suburb ofPierre van Ryneveld Park, the R21 intersects with theN1 highway (Danie Joubert Freeway;Pretoria Eastern Bypass), which is the freeway betweenJohannesburg andPolokwane. The Interchange is named the Flying Saucer Interchange. After the N1 Interchange, the R21 freeway continues southwards and has 10 off-ramps and interchanges for the remaining 43 km length of its freeway section.[2]
The R21 intersects with theM31 (Irene Off-ramp),R562 (Olifantsfontein Off-ramp),R25 (Birchleigh/Tembisa Off-ramp),R23 (Benoni Off-ramp),M32 (Pomona Off-ramp),M43 (Atlas Off-ramp),M96 (Kempton Park Central Off-ramp),R24 (O.R. Tambo International Airport Interchange),M41 (Jet Park Off-ramp) andN12 (Rietfontein Interchange).[2]
After the M31 Irene off-ramp, the R21 leaves theCity of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality and enters theCity of Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality. From the M31 Irene off-ramp up to just after the O.R. Tambo International Airport, the R21 is followed by theM57 metropolitan route from north to south (which can be used as an alternative route when there are roadworks on the highway).[9][10] From the R562 Olifantsfontein off-ramp to the R25 Birchleigh off-ramp, the R21 bypasses the township ofThembisa (forms its eastern boundary).[2]
At theO.R. Tambo International Airport, south-east ofKempton Park Central, the R21 meets theR24 freeway, which connects the airport withJohannesburg Central in the west. Via the R24 (named the Albertina Sisulu Freeway), the R21 is the only freeway apart from theBen Schoeman Freeway (designated as theN1) that linksPretoria withJohannesburg.[2]
EnteringBoksburg (just after theM41 Jet Park off-ramp), the R21 forms an interchange with theN12 highway to Johannesburg in the west andWitbank (eMalahleni) in the east at the Rietfontein Interchange, which marks the end of the R21 being a freeway. The R21 becomes Rietfontein Road when it junctions with theM44 road (North Rand Road) at the next junction by East Point Mall. Further south, at the suburb of Boksburg North, the R21 meets theM41 again and continues by way of a right turn to become Rondebult Road. The R21 then meets theR29 (Cason Road) and continues south, passing to the west ofBoksburg Central.[2]
After Boksburg Central, the R21 crosses theN17 highway at Elspark and continues south through Sunward Park. After Sunward Park, the R21 heads south-south-east, meeting theR554 (North Boundary Road) and intersects theM43 road (Barry Marais Road) for the second time at a t-junction inDawn Park.[2]
The R21 and the M43 are co-signed south-west. As Bierman Road, the R21/M43 pass over theM35 road (Germiston-Heidelberg Road), intersect with theR103, and reach an intersection with theN3 freeway just east ofVosloorus, which marks the end of the R21.[2]
In 2007, theGauteng Provincial Government announced that it would name the R21 freeway between Pretoria and theO. R. Tambo International Airport as theAlbertina Sisulu Freeway.[11][12][13] TheR24 route from OR Tambo International Airport south-west toBedfordview was also named theAlbertina Sisulu Freeway just before the2010 FIFA World Cup[14] and so, these two highways (the R21 from Pretoria to the airport and the R24 from the airport to Bedfordview) are together known as theAlbertina Sisulu Freeway.[11][13][15][16]
