After more than a year, motorists using Great North and High roads can rest assured that lengthy traffic light outages on their daily commute are a thing of the past.

Traffic flow across the intersections of Great North and High, Great North and Louisa, High and Stanley and High and Louisa roads has normalised thanks to the commitment of local businesses, with Manny Ferreirinha, owner of Mannys Hardware Supplies and CMS Security, leading the charge.

Effortlessly navigating the early morning traffic, the Benoni City Times caught up with Ferreirinha, who has become known for spearheading projects that benefit the community while avoiding the limelight.

“With these stretches of roads falling under the jurisdiction of the Gauteng Province Department of Roads and Transport, many motorists and residents were venting their frustration towards local ward councillors, as well as the City of Ekurhuleni, which has no authority to repair or replace the damaged and vandalised traffic lights,” he said.

“I approached the relevant department to enquire about a possible collaboration between the provincial government and local businesses to get the traffic lights back online and have the intersections operating optimally, finally easing congestion and ensuring community safety.

“A Memorandum of Understanding was reached, and with the support of Doves Transport, ANZAC Reinforcing and Steel Industries, as well as the Church of the Way, we have adopted the intersections and will henceforth be responsible for the maintenance and repair of the signals.”

Ferreirinha explained that the control boxes for the intersections have been moved into the safe confines of the four establishments’ properties.

“The mechanisms are connected to each property’s electricity grid as well as its back-up generation units. No matter what the situation, the intersections will continue to operate as normal,” he said.

“CMS has further committed to 24-hour remote surveillance and monitoring of the infrastructure. Should any of the signals go offline or be tampered with, we will be notified, and an authorised technician stipulated in the MoU will be dispatched to address the matter.

“No more waiting for the department to respond, the matter will be seen to as soon as possible.”

He said saying that, as an established Benoni businessman for more than 35 years, his success can only be attributed to the community’s ongoing and loyal support.

“This is our way of thanking residents and making our properties available to solutions that will benefit them,” he said, shying away from praise.

“This would not have been possible without the support of neighbouring businesses. Well-functioning infrastructure can make a big difference in the lives of others.”

In closing, Ferreirinha said it is easy to become consumed by the negativity of the lack of service delivery.

“Now more than ever, we need to join hands with government departments, offer sustainable solutions in order to get things working again,” he said.

“Even the smallest effort can have a huge impact on the greater scheme of things.”

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