The R37 is a

provincial route A state highway, state road, or state route (and the equivalent provincial highway, provincial road, or provincial route) is usually a road that is either numbered or maintained by a sub-national state or province. A road numbered by a state or ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

that connects

Polokwane Polokwane (, meaning "Sanctuary" in Northern SothoPolokwane - The Heart of the Limpopo Provin ...

with

Mbombela Mbombela, formerly Nelspruit, is a city in northeastern South Africa. It is the capital of the Mpumalanga province. Located on the Crocodile River (Mpumalanga), Crocodile River, the city lies about by road west of the Mozambique border, east o ...

via

Burgersfort Burgersfort is located in the valley of the Spekboom River at the edge of the Bushveld Complex in the Fetakgomo Tubatse Local Municipality of the Limpopo province of South Africa, near the border with the Mpumalanga province. The town was named ...

and

Lydenburg Lydenburg, also known as Mashishing, is a town in Thaba Chweu Local Municipality, on the Mpumalanga highveld, South Africa. It is situated on the Sterkspruit/Dorps River tributary of the Lepelle River at the summit of the Long Tom Pass. It h ...

(Mashishing).

Route

The R37 begins in

Polokwane Polokwane (, meaning "Sanctuary" in Northern SothoPolokwane - The Heart of the Limpopo Provin ...

Central (Capital of

Limpopo Limpopo () is the northernmost Provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa. It is named after the Limpopo River, which forms the province's western and northern borders. The term Limpopo is derived from Rivombo (Livombo/Lebombo), a ...

), at a junction with the two one-way streets that form the R101 route (Grober Street & Thabo Mbeki Street), just west of the R101's intersection with the R71 route. It begins by going southwards as Kerk Street to form a junction with the Polokwane Eastern Bypass ( N1 national route) and become the western border of the Polokwane Game Reserve. The R37 heads southwards for 30 kilometres as the Chuniespoort Pass to meet the northern terminus of the R579 road. At this junction, it turns to the south-east and proceeds for 7 kilometres to meet the eastern terminus of the R518 road north of

Lebowakgomo Lebowakgomo is the seat of the Lepelle-Nkumpi Local Municipality and was the capital of the former Bantustan of Lebowa. Lebowakgomo lies southeast of the Limpopo capital of Polokwane. The majority of Lebowakgomo's inhabitants speak SePedi. Hist ...

. At this junction, the R37 turns to the east and becomes the first section of the Orrie Baragwanath Pass. It goes eastwards for 25 kilometres to reach a junction south of Ga-Makgoba, where the Orrie Baragwanath Pass becomes the road to the north-east towards

Ofcolaco Ofcolaco is a tiny village situated in the Limpopo province of South Africa that was named after the Officers Colonial Land Company and formed by demobilised British army officers after the First World War. Settlement 43 km south-east of Tz ...

while the R37 remains as the easterly road. Just after, the R37 crosses the Olifants River. From the Olifants River crossing, the R37 heads south-east for 77 kilometres to enter the town of

, after crossing the

Steelpoort River The Steelpoort River, iNdubazi or Tubatse () is a river in Limpopo Province, South Africa. It flows northeastwards and is a right hand tributary of the Olifants River, joining it at the lower end of its basin. Its source is located at Kwaggaskop ...

, and reach a junction with the R555 road. The R555 and the R37 form one road south-east for almost 2 km up to the junction after Burgersfort Mall, where the R555 becomes its own road north-east while the R37 remains as the road heading south-south-east. The R37 heads south for 58 kilometres through farm orchards as the Watervalsrivier Pass, leaving the

Province and entering the

Mpumalanga Mpumalanga () is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. The name means "East", or literally "The Place Where the Sun Rises" in the Nguni languages. Mpumalanga lies in eastern South Africa, bordering Eswatini and Mozambique. It shares bor ...

Province, to the city of

(Mashishing). R37-Long Tom Pass-001

In Lydenburg's northern suburbs, the R37 meets the R36 road and the two routes form one road southwards into the city centre as De Clerq Street, then east as 1st Street, before the R36 becomes its own road southwards towards

Machadodorp Machadodorp, also known by its official name eNtokozweni, is a small town situated on the N4 national highway, near the edge of the escarpment in the Mpumalanga province of South Africa. The Elands River runs through the town. There is a natural ...

at the Viljoen Street junction. The R37 continues eastwards as Voortrekker Street before heading up the

Long Tom Pass Long Tom Pass is a mountain pass on the Great Escarpment, Southern Africa, Great Escarpment situated in the Mpumalanga province, on the R37 (Limpopo), R37 regional route between Lydenburg and Sabie (South Africa). It is named after the 155 mm Cr ...

. As the Long Tom Pass, it goes eastwards for 46 kilometres, as the pass zig-zags, to meet the southern terminus of the R532 road just south of the town of

Sabie Sabie is a forestry town situated on the banks of the Sabie River in Mpumalanga, South Africa. The name Sabie is derived from the Xitsonga language word "Sava" which means "Sand" because of the rich Sand in the area . The word Sava was moderniz ...

. The R532 to Sabie takes over as the Long Tom Pass. From the R532 junction south of Sabie, the R37 goes south-south-east for 47 kilometres, meeting the eastern terminus of the R539 road, to reach the city of

(Capital of

). It first reaches an intersection with the Mbombela Northern Bypass ( N4 national route;

Maputo Corridor The Maputo Corridor is a major trade corridor which connects the Gauteng, Limpopo, and Mpumalanga provinces of South Africa with Maputo, which is a port and the capital of Mozambique. The corridor comprises roads - including the N4 toll road (from ...

) before entering the suburb of Riverside and proceeding to reach its terminus at a junction with the R40 road (Madiba Drive), just next to the R40's Crocodile River crossing.

References

External links

Routes Travel Info
{{DEFAULTSORT:R37 Road (South Africa) 37 37 Provincial routes in South Africa