Roads in Lydenburg in worst condition ever
This is not only due to poor maintenance but also because of heavy trucks making use of the town’s roads.
LYDENBURG – Roads in this town are in the worst condition they have ever been. This is not only due to poor maintenance but also because of heavy trucks making use of the town’s roads.
Voortrekker Street has seen the most deterioration over the past months.
On Monday hundreds of residents reacted to a discussion posted on the newspaper’s Facebook page regarding the current state of the roads. Residents said that they were fed up with having to dish out money for damaged vehicles.
Even more worrying is the fact that on TripAdvisor, tourists are warning other road users who are planning trips to the Kruger National Park to avoid the roads in and around the town.
One of the comments on this site made under the username ThanD reads: “I found that road okay, apart from 10km or so either side of Mashishing/Lydenburg where there are a few large potholes. Given the excellent roads in many parts of SA, I’m surprised they haven’t sorted out an important regional road linking the N4 and central Kruger”.
Rwjames1uk stated: “Just driven those roads. Agree, avoid all roads around Lydenburg. Terrible road conditions.”
Steelburger/Lydenburg News took photos of the potholes in Voortrekker Street. While we were busy, a TCM bakkie pulled up and started filling the holes with sand. When asked if they were using sand to fill the potholes the workers drove off.
Cllr Nicko Janse van Vuuren of the DA said that the state of the roads in TCM was becoming a major problem.
“The reason for this is that the roads are the first impression that tourists, business people and potential investors get of this town. It is also a sad reflection of how the town is being managed. We are consistently falling far behind with road maintenance.
It just shows that there is no plan, that the revenue base is consistently shrinking and that we have no new investments in town because we don’t have the funds to fix the roads. If people don’t realise the necessity of fixing the roads, they will not understand how important it is to get infrastructure working. We have a huge problem on our hands. I have been told by businesses that they want to leave the town because of the ailing infrastructure. The roads are the biggest manifestation of that and will be the biggest problem we will face in the near future,” he said.
We are consistently falling far behind with road maintenance. It just shows that there is no plan, that the revenue base is consistently shrinking and that we have no new investments in town because we don’t have the funds to fix the roads.
If people don’t realise the necessity of fixing the roads, they will not understand how important it is to get infrastructure working. We have a huge problem on our hands. I have been told by businesses that they want to leave the town because of the ailing infrastructure. The roads are the biggest manifestation of that and will be the biggest problem we will face in the near future,” he said.
INFO BLOCK
Steelburger/ Lydenburg News contacted TCM about the state of the roads and asked if there were any plans to repair the potholes. The newspaper also asked if the municipality attempted to contact the long-haul truck companies. Mr Puleng Mapheto, communications manager at TCM said that a service provider had been appointed and the work to fix the potholes in town is expected to start before the end of March.
“The streets that will be prioritised are Voortrekker, Viljoen, De Clerq, Potgieter, Kerk, Maasdorp and De Villiers. There are talks between the municipality and bulk-carrier businesses regarding the state of the roads. A meeting is already scheduled between the municipality and Ngululu Bulk Carriers. Information will be made available regarding the developments. Please take note that the problem of potholes is not unique to TCM. Most towns experience these problems, particularly during the rainy season,” Mapetho said.
