Enthusiastic to lead and hit the ground running, Bramley Police Station’s new station commander, Colonel Lionel Chetty aims to tackle Sector 2’s increasing crime rates.

Chetty was speaking at a Bramley Sector 2 Community Policing Forum (CPF) meeting on the evening of April 15, chaired by the CPF chairperson Clinton Powys, and attended by Bramley SAPS members, CPF Sector 2’s executive committee and the Midway Mall property owners.

Chetty highlighted that he had 35 years of experience in policing, “I have been a station commander before at other police stations. I am interested in learning about the community and culture here, and my bottom line is to try to support the community here in terms of reducing crime.”

Read more: Bramley Police Station appoints new station commander

He also added that he believes in community partnerships and has an open-door policy, encouraging community members to visit the station to share grievances.

Powys delved into longstanding grievances regarding JMPD, which included:

• An illegal spaza shop on the sidewalk at 107 11th Road, Kew.
• Spaza shop on 2nd Avenue has taken over the pavement and is used for parking
• Vehicles are improperly using the Rea Vaya bus lanes and are blocking bus lanes to make U-turns.
• School congestion: Eastwood Christian School on Silwood Road results in uncontrollable traffic after school.
• There is an illegal taxi rank on Scott Street and Corlett Drive, which sees taxis parking from 14:00-17:00. There is also an illegal spaza shop across the road, which results in motorists stopping in the middle of the road to buy from the shop.
  9th and 4th Roads in Kew were also a topical issue due to the continuous hijacking incidents that occur there

Also read: Bramley CPF Sector 2 encourages collaboration between local authorities and the private sector

Residents are calling for a stop sign or traffic circle as a traffic control measure, rather than a traffic light, where motorists are forced to stop longer.

Johannesburg Roads Agency stakeholder representative, Nyeleti Mackay, urged residents to submit a petition for a traffic circle.

“To get a traffic circle as a traffic calming measure, processes and measures must be followed, which involve an engineer going onsite to inspect and may take months. Getting a stop sign is usually a quicker process, which can take weeks.”

Another area of concern for the community was an alleged hijacked house in Kew, which was not only an eyesore, but an alleged crime dungeon as well.

Chetty said he’d be following up on the matter to find out what was going on at the property.

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