Tshwane announces another road closure due to a sinkhole

The Tshwane Metro has closed off John Vorster drive for fear of a sinkhole expanding in the area.

Ward 65 Councillor Gert Visser told the Rekord that the road was barricaded on Saturday morning.

The westbound road was also cordoned off between Nellmapius Drive and Marco Polo Street, he added.

“As the stormwater channel collapsed and eroded under the roadway, the water flow during the rain is not being channeled appropriately, which means there is a risk of the sinkhole expanding in an eastern direction, hence the reason for the additional barriers,” Visser told Rekord.

According to the ward councillor, the metro got advice from the Geology department to close the entire carriageway as a preventative measure.

“Centurion is basically located on dolomite. Currently there are approximately 49 sinkholes in Centurion with a limited budget of only R28 million per annum to fill sinkholes, repair the roadways and other related infrastructure,” he said.

Visser said the municipality needed to increase the allocated budget for fixing sinkholes to R84 million in the next financial year.

The metro would continue with its plans to mobilise funds to be able to fix sinkholes around Centurion, he said.

However, he revealed that if the city failed to have enough budget to fix the sinkhole in the next financial year, with all the others that also need attention, it could take more than a year to get it fixed.

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