Risk due to gabion delay gamble leaves
Residents fear erosion, safety risks, and further delays after contractors failed to return to complete the Fairland Estate gabions project.
Residents of Fairland Estate say they are losing confidence in Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA), after contractors failed to return to complete the Fairland gabions project, despite assurances that the work would be finished by the end of June.
The storm water rehabilitation project, which began on June 10, 2025, was originally scheduled to take five months to complete. However, more than a year later, residents say the project remains unfinished, with no contractors having been on site since May.
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In a response to the publication’s enquiry on June 8, JRA said the project was 94% complete, with only the rehabilitation of the embankment and construction of a small storm water channel remaining. The agency said the revised completion date was the end of June 2026, subject to favourable conditions.
Residents now say that deadline has passed with no sign of construction teams returning.
Fairland Estate resident Arlene Mania said the site has remained untouched for months, leaving critical work unfinished.
According to her, the remaining work includes backfilling behind the gabion walls, levelling the surrounding area, planting grass to stabilise the embankment, completing the gabion structure to Burnside complex, and constructing the storm water runoff channel on the northern side of the park.
She said the incomplete works have left behind uneven clay backfill, rubble piles, exposed sand, and construction materials, creating both environmental and safety concerns.
“The clay soil is uneven, slippery when wet, and unsafe to walk on. There are piles of rubble on both sides of the spruit, a large mound of sand that could easily wash away when it rains, and old steel wire still lying on the opposite bank.”
Mania added that vegetation and birdlife have yet to return to the rehabilitated area because sections of the project remain incomplete.
Fellow resident Brian Bucknall confirmed that contractors have not been seen on site since the end of May.
He said unfinished work remains on the western-to-eastern section of the project, while site clearing and rehabilitation have also not been completed. Bucknall said the delays continue to affect residents by limiting access to the park, while creating ongoing security concerns.
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Both residents fear heavy rainfall could undo much of the work already completed.
Mania warned that incomplete sections could begin eroding into the completed gabion structures, while the exposed clay backfill may not drain properly, becoming dangerously slippery.
She also expressed concern that the large stockpile of sand could be washed downstream during heavy rain.
Bucknall agreed, saying the longer the project remains unfinished, the greater the risk of damage to the rehabilitation work and injury to residents using the area.
Residents are now calling on JRA to honour its revised completion commitment by returning contractors to site and completing the final phase of the project before further deterioration occurs.
JRA did respond to the publication on July 24, stating that they are still looking for information from the project manager.
In follow-ups, the information remained the same. Northcliff Melville Times will update the story as new information is supplied.
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