PotholeFixGP app records over 4000 downloads
The app has a public dashboard where users can view reported potholes and their repair status.
The recently launched PotholeFixGP mobile App has been downloaded 4 861 times on the Google Play Store, with 1 547 potholes reported by users so far.
The app is a collaboration between the Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport (GDRT) and the CSIR (The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research).
“The app was designed with user-friendly principles in mind,” said CSIR Impact area manager, Dr Mathetha Mokonyama.
“The department has been working with the CSIR to improve the detection and reporting of potholes by the public.”
Mokonyama said potholes were a gruesome reality on roads.
“They are road surface defects resulting from a failure of the road base, and their severity is accelerated by increased water seepage, heavy road traffic, poor road construction methods and poor maintenance.”
He said the app was easy to use.
“The user can provide the exact location of a pothole by using the phone’s GPS functionality or by dropping a geo-location pin on a map.
“In addition to providing the location of the pothole, the user can also provide information on the estimated size of the pothole and a corresponding photograph of the pothole.”
Mokonyama said the app has a public dashboard where users can view reported potholes and their repair status.
“To track a reported pothole, a user captures the reference number initially received when they reported the pothole on the app.
“It provides a status update of the pothole, from ‘to assigned’ and eventually ‘to completed’ for the department and the user who reported the issue.”
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Mokonyama said they decided to use an app because it gives users full power to report potholes.
“By using the app, users receive feedback at various stages of the repair process.”
Gauteng public roads and transport infrastructure MEC Jacob Mamabolo said he appreciated the increased use of the app since its launch.
“Since the launch, we have received the first set of data, which gives us insights into the maintenance challenges on our roads.
“This data is very important as it provides us with a clear picture of maintenance work required, assisting us to plan better on resources (human and otherwise), said Mamabolo.
Monthly updates on the data collected through the app will be made available to the public to promote transparency and accountability.
The app can be downloaded on the Google Play Store and the iOS version will be made available soon.
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