Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA) has confirmed that there is currently no budget allocated for the upgrade or rehabilitation of roads in River Park, Ward 81.

This comes despite the agency stating it acknowledges the importance of addressing deteriorated roads and the positive impact improved road infrastructure has on communities.

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According to JRA head of department for infrastructure development Kwazelela Mcetywa, the agency’s overall roads programme budget has been cut, with remaining funds channelled into completing projects already under construction elsewhere. “Hence there are no funds available for new road upgrade projects.

Further, JRA does not have an existing road upgrade programme in River Park area, hence road assessments will have to be conducted when budget is available in order to establish a correct intervention required,” Mcetywa said.

This comes after Ward 81 activist Theo Lengwati raised concerns last week over the deteriorating state of River Park’s roads, which he said reflected years of neglect. Lengwati said complaints had repeatedly been logged and escalated, but residents were only ever told the issues had been noted, with no turnaround time given and no work carried out. He said this pattern has persisted for roughly four years.

Adding to residents’ frustration, Lengwati said, is watching JRA crews at work in other parts of Ward 81 and across the city while River Park is passed over. He said the last time JRA was seen in River Park was between 2021 and 2022, when crews reinstated the road in phase 3.

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However, Mcetywa said all wards are prioritised in JRA’s routine maintenance annual plans, though turnaround times have been affected by a backlog the agency is currently working through.

He said JRA’s storm water team was on site in River Park as recently as August 29, and that maintenance work has been ongoing, including clearing multiple blocked drains on streets such as Thomas Molepo Street, where road maintenance issues have since been resolved.

He did say, however, that progress has been hampered on streets like Sadikwe, where abandoned, immobile vehicles are blocking access to storm water inlets that maintenance crews need to service.

He said they have a plan to deal with the remaining blockages and to begin repairing the road infrastructure in due course, but Mcetywa said the agency is not yet able to commit to a specific timeline, citing the backlog affecting all wards across the city.

Lengwati said he intends to start a pothole campaign going forward, rallying the community to play a role in actively reporting potholes in their area.

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