Pothole repairs on heavily affected roads in Pretoria east commenced on January 23 and work is currently in progress, according to the Tshwane metro.

Spokesperson Lindela Mashigo said the metro is aware of potholes reported in Menlo Park, Lynnwood, and surrounding suburbs.

“Potholes are identified through scouting and reported on the city’s SAP/CRM system,” Mashigo said.

He said it is difficult to provide an exact number of service requests logged for each street, as duplicate reports often inflate figures.

According to Mashigo, one pothole can be reported multiple times with different reference numbers, thus increasing the number of service requests on the system, he said.

Addressing concerns about delays, he said the backlog of pothole repairs has increased due to persistent rainfall damaging road infrastructure.

“However, the city’s maintenance teams are addressing the huge backlog,” he said.

Mashigo added that maintenance teams are currently stretched thin while attending to reported defects.

He confirmed that the municipality does not support residents placing rocks or bricks inside potholes.

“The municipality does not condone the placing of rocks or bricks in potholes,” Mashigo said.

Mashigo said interim measures are sometimes implemented when immediate permanent repairs are not possible.

He explained that potholes are temporarily filled until permanent repairs can be carried out.

According to Mashigo, pothole repairs are prioritised based on the severity of road conditions, and permanent repairs on 20th Street, High Street and other affected roads began on January 23.

He urged residents not to attempt repairs themselves, noting that assistance can be provided through the Community Upliftment Precinct (CUP) initiative.

Mashigo said residents do not have the authority to carry out repairs without the city’s permission.

“However, the city introduced the CUP initiative for residents to get approval to assist with repairs,” Mashigo said.

Despite the metro’s assurances, residents say conditions on the ground remain dangerous.

Pretoria east residents have resorted to planting trees and placing bricks inside potholes after repeated reports from the metro yielded no lasting repairs.

Areas affected include Menlo Park, Ashlea Gardens, Lynnwood North and South, Hazelwood and Maroelana, Waterkloof and Hillcrest.

Residents claim several potholes have been reported multiple times, with reference numbers issued, but repairs either not carried out or failing shortly after completion.

Resident Michelle Simão, who uses the affected roads daily, said she has been reporting potholes since July last year, often on a weekly basis.

“I have been reporting with no result in fixing them since July last year. Nothing has been done,” said Simão.

“I have to drive like a person who seems under the influence because I can’t drive straight. I’m constantly swerving to avoid potholes.”

Simão said some potholes force motorists into dangerous manoeuvres, stating that sometimes she has to drive into oncoming traffic and over traffic circles just to avoid the big potholes.

She added that on one road she uses daily, a resident planted a tree inside a pothole.

“It was repaired [not] long afterwards, but now it’s reappearing,” she said. She believes poor workmanship is contributing to recurring damage.

“If the metro does fix them, it’s done so badly that once it rains, the potholes just come back,” Simão said.

“Honestly, our roads and our city are just going down. There’s no point in reporting anything anymore because it doesn’t get fixed.”

She added that service delivery challenges extend beyond roads.

“I was without power for six days and couldn’t get anyone to help me. Some of these issues were left for months before being repaired,” she said.

Ward 82 councillor Siobhan Muller said the scale of the pothole problem in her ward alone is concerning.

“There are over 800 potholes in Ward 82,” Muller said.

According to Muller, the ward committee divided the ward into sections and physically drove through the area, listing and documenting potholes.

Muller said residents and businesses are increasingly frustrated by slow response times and poor-quality repairs.

“Some potholes cover an entire lane. Our vehicles are being damaged, the potholes are getting bigger and deeper, and the few that are repaired are often done badly,” she said.

Muller has since launched a petition calling for improved service delivery and quicker response times.

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