Confusion and finger-pointing between Eskom and the Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA) continue to delay the restoration of traffic lights at the busy Witkoppen Road and Main Road (M71) intersection in Paulshof. The traffic lights have been out for more than two years.
Eskom publicly stated that it has been ready to energise the intersection for more than two weeks, contradicting JRA’s position that the delay lies with the power utility. According to Eskom spokesperson Amanda Qithi, technicians were on site as early as February 5, waiting for JRA to connect its cable to the control box so power could be restored.
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“From our side, we’ve been ready to energise. We were on site and waiting. The outstanding work is for JRA to connect their cable to the box,” said Qithi.
Eskom also revealed that a nearby business owner voluntarily allowed Eskom to move infrastructure onto his private property to help secure the cable and control box, a move Eskom described as a positive example of community partnership.
“The property owner stepped forward to assist, and that benefits all residents, road users and the wider community.” She encouraged other businesses to work with Eskom by helping safeguard infrastructure and reporting suspicious activity.
Ward 93 councillor Vino Reddy has been vocal about getting the issue resolved, and even gate-crashed a high-level meeting between the entities to address the traffic light issues in his ward. Meanwhile, JRA maintains that the outage is linked to a high-voltage power fault and said responsibility rests with Eskom.
“The intersection on Witkoppen Road and Main Road is affected by a power failure, and the fault identified is a high-power voltage which JRA is engaging with Eskom to resolve,” said the agency’s Mosa Makhalima.
“At this stage, the estimated time of resolution cannot be confirmed as it is within the ambit of Eskom to address the power fault, which will restore the functionality of the traffic lights.” Ward 94 councillor David Foley has also stepped in to assist Reddy after getting a trail of complaints from residents.
“I would like to thank Eskom for attending to the issue; it is now over to JRA to restore the traffic lights,” he said.
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