Metro blames pothole-ridden street in Atteridgeville on informal carwashers

The potholes along Masupa Street in Saulsville are so bad that they cause problems during peak-hour traffic, frustrated residents claim.

“There are so many potholes that it makes it difficult to drive here,” resident Rose Mokgele told Rekord.

The street is a main road close to a nearby cricket facility and hostels.

The numerous potholes give local motorists a hard time getting around due to the sheer amount of them and how deep they can be.

Mokgele said that she simply wants the metro to intervene in the situation so locals won’t have any more problems.

“We have carwashes on either side of the street,” she said.

“I don’t know if there’s a blocked drain or what, but the water from the carwashes flows straight into the potholes. You won’t even notice from a distance that there’s a pothole until you drive into it.”

Mokgele said she first contacted the metro on the matter back in April, but received no response. After involving her local ward councillor, the metro dispatched workers in late May to resolve the matter.

But she said that the work done was inadequate. Now the potholes cause traffic problems during peak hours.

“They didn’t fix it well. The following week after they came, the road was damaged once again and there are even more potholes now.”

Mokgele has been trying to get the metro back to deal with the problem, but much like her first attempt, she said that she’s facing hurdles.

The metro, however, blamed the ongoing damage to the street on nearby informal carwashes instead of any blocked drains or channels.

“A maintenance team was dispatched in May 2023,” said Tshwane metro spokesperson Lindela Mashigo.

“However, the road is damaged due to the constant flow of water from a nearby carwash.

“The carwash must cease operations or be relocated to resolve the problem.”

According to Mashigo, repairs will be “prioritised and effected” as soon as hot asphalt is secured.

The metro did not indicate whether any law-enforcement action would be taken regarding the informal carwashers.

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