State of roads remain an ongoing saga
The Mpumalanga Department of Public Works, Roads and Transport started using its Jetpatcher trucks to repair some of the potholes on the major tourist routes in the province, however, two of the trucks are standing stationary in storage in the government garage.
After standing idle for almost four months, the Mpumalanga Department of Public Works, Roads and Transport (DPWRT) finally started using its specialised trucks to repair potholes on the major tourist routes in the province.
Two more Jetpatcher trucks are, however, standing in storage in the government garage in Petroleum Street.
“The DPWRT doesn’t seem to understand the importance of fixing potholes on our (Mpumalanga’s) tourism routes,” Oupa Pilane, the chairperson of the regional tourism committee of the KLCBT, recently complained.
“It’s been four months now and the trucks have since been parked, while millions of the taxpayers’ money have been spent with no returns on the investment.”
ALSO READ: Three men die in accident on N4 Toll Road towards Mbombela
Pilane said the department approached the tourism industry last year to assist in drawing up a priority list of the roads that desperately needed to have potholes repaired. “We gave them the list, but haven’t heard from them since.”
The government purchased four Jetpatcher trucks, costing R5.8m each, in August last year. When delivery was taken of the trucks in December, two were parked at the government garage and the other two at the DPWRT cost centre in Sabie.
Pilane took a sideswipe at the government, saying, “We call on the premier to get her MECs (among them MEC Mohita Latchminarain from DPWRT) to (do their) work. We should not be blinded by the upcoming ANC conference at the expense of service delivery.”
ALSO READ: Potholes filled with soil in White River and Hazyview
Over the past view months, complaints came in thick and fast about the conditions of the roads in the Lowveld.
“Mpumalanga is home to some world-renowned tourism destinations. One of them is Lone Creek Falls in Sabie. The road leading to these falls is in such a poor state, that it cannot be driven on with a normal sedan vehicle,” a resident, who wished to remain anonymous, said. “The general state of roads in the Sabie/Graskop area is very bad and extremely dangerous. How can government allow our roads and infrastructure to rot like this?”
Marina Coetzee of Barberton said the roads from eManzana to Barberton and from Barberton to Kaapmuiden are totally destroyed.
“Not to mention the condition of the roads in these towns. It needs to be fixed properly, not just by dumping a packet of old tar in it,” she said.
ALSO READ: Internal conflicts delay construction in Koraalboom Avenue
“The department is currently using two trucks on the Dullstroom/Mashishing (Lydenburg) and Hazyview/Sabie roads. Next week, repairs will be done on the road between Hazyview and the Kruger National Park,” Bongani Dhlamini, the spokesperson for the DPWRT, said this week.
Dhlamini said the trucks will contribute to big budget savings for the department.
“The trucks’ running cost and consumables are exceptionally low, and the materials used are easily to handle and have a long shelf life. The current average rate per square metre for outsourced patching of a pothole is between R700 and R1 500. With a mechanised potholes repair machine, the approximate cost is R500 per square metre. Another cost-saving aspect is labour. The estimated time it takes the Jetpatcher to fill a pothole of one metre by one metre by 50 millimetres is seven to 10 minutes.”
Do you have more information about the story?
Please send us an email to editorial@lowvelder.co.za.
For free breaking and community news, visit Lowvelder’s website: Lowvelder
For more news and interesting articles, like Lowvelder on Facebook, follow us on Twitter or Instagram
