Residents ‘deserve better’ than debris left after road repairs

Residents of Sinoville, together with their ward councillor, have voiced growing frustration at the metro, after road maintenance teams left sidewalks littered with debris after repair work.

Ward 50 councillor Lenise Breytenbach said while road maintenance is a welcome service, the failure to clean up afterwards shows a disregard for residents’ living conditions.

According to her, pavements along several streets, including Marija, Aldo, and Kameeldoring, have been left unusable, forcing pedestrians to walk in the road, raising safety concerns.

“The metro needs to understand that service delivery is not just about filling potholes or repairing roads.

“It is about restoring an area to a safe and acceptable condition once the work is completed. Leaving rubble scattered on sidewalks is both unsafe and unfair to residents who pay rates and taxes,” she said.

Resident Annemarie du Plessis pointed out the rubble has been left for weeks without any sign of follow-up.

“I appreciate that the metro is fixing our roads, but what is the use if we can’t even walk safely on the pavements?

“My kids have to walk on the street where cars speed by, just because the sidewalks are blocked by piles of rubble. It feels like they only do half the job,” she complained.

Du Plessis said every time the metro comes, they leave a bigger mess than before.

“We were told the rubble would be collected in a few days, but it’s been over a month. This is not just untidy, it’s dangerous, especially for elderly people who use the sidewalks,” she said.

Breytenbach has escalated the matter to metro officials, but said responses have been slow and dismissive. She stressed that service delivery must be consistent and complete.

“We cannot continue with a culture of unfinished work. If the metro deploys contractors or teams to repair roads, then part of that responsibility includes restoring pavements, clearing rubble, and ensuring residents are not left with secondary problems. Ratepayers deserve better,” she added.

The councillor said she will continue to put pressure on the metro to collect the rubble and introduce stricter monitoring of contractors to ensure proper completion of work.

Metro spokesperson Lindela Mashigo said, according to the metro’s standard operating procedure, disposal of excess material and rubble should be done immediately after the works are completed.

“However, there are situations where regions experience clean-up backlogs. To address the backlogs, regional maintenance teams are… augmented by a special cleaning team to catch up on the backlogs.

“Residents are encouraged to report unremoved rubble or potholes to customercare@tshwane.gov.za or potholes@tshwane.gov.za, use the WhatsApp number 087 153 1001, or call 012 358 9999. A unique reference number will be generated and issued to the reporting individual or resident,” said Mashigo.

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