The recent rains have exposed the city’s decaying road infrastructure, as many of them are riddled with potholes.

Despite the City of Mbombela (CoM) and other government stakeholders’ interventions to repair them, residents in the affected areas are demanding immediate action.

Many claim to have suffered tyre damage due to the potholes, and with the rainy season just beginning, the situation is getting out of hand.

Some suggest that more severely affected roads have reached the end of their lifespan and need to be rebuilt or resealed, as the patching of the potholes only lasts for a few days before they reappear.

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One resident, Charles Stuurman, said that while the municipality does try to repair the potholes, he believes they are wasting money.

“Some of the roads in town are damaged beyond repair, and they just need to rebuild them and make sure that they do a quality job. That will save them from spending money on constantly repairing the potholes,”he said.

Stuurman acknowledged that financial constraints prevent the municipality from fixing all the roads, and suggested they focus on those that are in the worst state.

Sizwe Ntuli echoed this sentiment: “The municipality needs to admit they have failed to address the decaying infrastructure. Potholes are present in all the streets managed by the municipality. Even when they fix them, the repairs only last for a few days. That must be an indication that the road cannot be fixed, but needs to be redone to save money.”

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Many affected residents share the same frustration, demanding that the municipality addresses the issue as a matter of urgency since the rainy season will inevitably make the problems worse.

CoM spokesperson, Joseph Ngala said: “Patching of potholes is an ongoing process and is a daily activity. As long as they have been reported, they will be attended to. We have a