Residents in the east of Pretoria are demanding action after repeated crashes at the intersection of Delmas Road and Barnard Street have been attributed to excessive driving speeds and traffic light patterns.

Marcel Blanc described the crashes as entirely preventable and warned that continued inaction is putting motorists and pedestrians at serious risk.

Blanc said a departmental speed and road safety assessment conducted in January confirmed that excessive driving speeds and hazardous traffic patterns were the primary causes of the collisions.

He said that despite certain safety interventions, including protected right-turn signals, better channelisation, speed-control measures, and better police visibility, being recommended, the Tshwane metro has not taken steps to improve safety.

“This is no longer a theoretical risk; the pattern is established. The danger is documented. The [required] interventions are known. What remains absent is implementation.”

He highlighted persistent issues at the intersection, including illegal right turns from the middle lane and limited traffic law enforcement, warning that collisions continue to occur under largely unchanged conditions.

“Additional collisions have continued, with some speed limit signs reportedly inactive or covered, mainly to restrict informal trading in the middle of the road.”

Blanc said residents have formally escalated these concerns to the Municipal Manager, MMC for Roads and Transport, and the Tshwane metro, citing the foreseeable risk of serious injury or fatalities.

“Without immediate and visible interventions, this intersection will continue to pose serious hazards,” he said.

He said while traffic signal timings have been adjusted: amber at three seconds and all-red at two seconds, the primary contributing factor remains driver behaviour.

“Physical interventions are limited due to the current layout and budget constraints. The TMPD has been requested to step up speed and traffic law enforcement, particularly to prevent illegal right-turn movements from the middle lane.”

Blanc stressed that residents are urging the city to implement permanent engineering solutions, increase enforcement visibility, and ensure executive oversight to prevent further accidents and potential loss of life.

Metro spokesperson Lindela Mashigo confirmed that a comprehensive road safety assessment was done in January, including traffic counts and on-site observations.

He said this led to a traffic signal timing plan adjustment to optimise operations, with the amber phase made three seconds longer and the all-red phase extended by two seconds.

Mashigo attributed the accidents primarily to driver behaviour, saying that drivers turning right are responsible for making sure that there is a big enough gap in traffic before they turn.

He added that a right-turn arrow is only needed for traffic turning right onto Barnard Street.

Mashigo said the city plans to address illegal right-turn movements from the middle lane through regular by-law enforcement operations by the TMPD.

He added that speed-control measures and potential red-light enforcement are also being considered.

Mashigo explained that the covered speed sign relates to preventing informal traders on Delmas Road, not standard speed limits.

He said short-term measures include optimised intersection signal settings and increased TMPD enforcement to prevent unauthorised right-turn movements.

“Future plans may include additional road markings or traffic islands if the layout allows.”

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