Dust settles on Wessels Road
Figuratively speaking, the dust won't settle until the road has been rebuilt.
The dust has literally settled on Wessels Road as well as on and in almost everything else in the vicinity.
This does not mean, however, that the efforts of business owners to get the authorities to act and repair the road have been abandoned.
The tarred surface of the road is riddled with potholes and has been eroded by the hundreds of heavy vehicles and coal trucks that travel on the road daily and are compelled to make use of the road which is a designated heavy vehicle route.
Figuratively speaking, the dust won’t settle until the road has been rebuilt.
These sentiments were echoed by business and property owners in Wessels Road when interviewed by the Highvelder.
The business owners are united in their frustration that even after many requests over many years for a solution, little has been done.
“We are losing business hand over fist because the road has become too dangerous for clients to access our businesses. Besides potentially having their vehicles damaged, the risk of being involved in an accident is ever present. Heavy trucks and other vehicles constantly weave to and fro across the road in an effort to find the smoothest portions,” said a business owner whose frustration was clearly evident.
“There are also no more markings on the road,” he said.
Another factor leading to loss of business is the problem of keeping stock clean and dust-free.
“Dusty stock does not sell easily, so we are compelled to dust almost everything in the store daily. Counter tops, chairs and even the stationery have to be dusted off almost hourly,” he added.
According to one of the business owners, the Mpumalanga Department of Public Works cannot take responsibility for the repair or maintenance of the road, because it is not a provincial through-road.
“The Msukaligwa Local Municipality that should be responsible for this, simply does not have the money. The potholes are periodically filled with soil which only compounds the problem” he said.
The business owners are agreed that their businesses are well established and that they contribute vast sums of money to the municipal coffers in the form of property taxes, levies and consumer accounts.
“If we continue to lose business in this manner, we may well be forced to close our doors, which will inevitably result in job losses as well as decreased revenue for the municipality,” he concluded.
