South Road residents Keith and Sarah Majova have been fighting for more than two years to have a damaged electricity pillar box on their sidewalk replaced.

According to Majova, the pillar box was damaged in a collision.

“South Road has become Witpoortjie’s Kyalami,” she says. “We were in the house one night when a car speeding down South Road in the direction of Roodepoort lost control and crashed into the pillar box,” Keith says.

He says the electricity supply to most of the street was affected.

“City Power was called, and after a day or two, they sent someone out to effect the necessary repairs.

“Unfortunately, the pillar box was never repaired or replaced. They only reconnected the severed electricity cables to restore power.”

Keith adds that despite numerous attempts over the past two years, the pillar box remains severely damaged.

“It affords cable thieves the perfect opportunity to get easy access to the cables,” he says. “The cables are stolen at least once or twice a month, resulting in electricity outages that sometimes last for days.

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“Unfortunately, it also leaves live cables exposed within easy reach of any passer-by. We have three schools in our immediate vicinity. I am surprised that some child has not yet been electrocuted.”

The Roodepoort Record spoke to City Power spokesperson Isaac Mangena, who confirmed the entity is aware of the problem.

“The damaged unit is a specially designed pillar box and is not a standard model that can be replaced with readily available stock,” Mangena says.

“As a result, the entity is in the process of sourcing a suitable replacement to ensure the infrastructure is restored safely and correctly.

“In the interim, City Power’s priority has been to maintain power supply to affected customers.

“Whenever cable theft or damage results in power interruptions, technical teams are dispatched to repair the network and restore supply as quickly as possible.

“Repairs and the replacement of damaged infrastructure, including pillar boxes, will be undertaken once the required equipment becomes available through the procurement process.”

The Majovas have also attempted to have traffic calming measures implemented and streetlights erected along South Road, with no luck.

The Record approached the Johannesburg Roads Agency, but has received no response at the time of publication.