Crossing poses a risk to vehicles and commuters

KARINO – Service delivery is much needed at the Karino crossing – the road that connects various locations such as KaNyamazane, Pienaar, Thekwane South and North to Nelspruit. It is in need of new traffic lights to regulate the alarmingly increasing volume in traffic from all of these locations.

For the past five years, this route has functioned in a very poor way and has recorded a terrifying number of accidents during its peak time or rush hour, from

07:00 to 09:00.

The lack of traffic lights at this junction has put the lives of many commuters at risk.

Unfortunately, it has not been formally controlled by the traffic department on a regular basis, and has no lights regulating the huge volumes of traffic passing through. Commuters are left to decide for themselves when to cross, hoping not to be hit by a car.

Because of the lack of regulation or control by the traffic department, the town has seen many accidents that could have been easily avoided and lives spared if only the Mbombela Municipality saw it important to have installed traffic lights.

“I wonder how long we are going to be left to cross here without traffic lights and how many accidents must still happen before the department intervenes,” said

Ms Nonhlanhla Mkhonza, a resident.

From June to August, minor changes were made to improve this route, which is meant to make it easily accessible to enter the new petrol station currently under construction on the right side when heading to town.

Still these changes to the Karino Road have had no positive impact on commuters going to and from work and school using public or private transportation.

This year the junction has seen the highest number of cars passing through daily with the increasing number of cars being bought.

On days that are not specified to the public, this route has traffic officers parked on the side of the road and directing traffic in an effort to decrease the tension that drivers experience on a daily basis, which is the cause of some accidents due to impatience and forcing their way through the traffic get to work on time.

“I have been staying in Lekazi for the past 30 years and have been using this route every day to and from work. I have seen the most horrifying accidents, from trucks colliding with small vehicles to small vehicles colliding with one another and all I could think is those lives could have been spared if there were robots there,” said

Mr Bheki Khoza.

Clearly letting drivers have the courtesy of deciding whose turn it is to drive through has not been working with the number of accidents still happening on this route, the people are pleading to the Mbombela Municipality to erect traffic lights in this junction and save the lives of people that commute on it every day.