Ward 97 councillor, Andre Beetge reports on a number of civic projects underway in Amanzimtoti.
“A Wednesday morning site inspection of the washaway on the N2 southbound before the Adams off-ramp by a South African National Roads Agency Limited (SANRAL) engineer confirmed that progress is in line with expectation, and completion remains scheduled for November,” said Cllr Beetge.
Trains
Unconfirmed reports indicate the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) managed to reinstate the damaged line between Winklespruit and Umbogintwini ahead of schedule, rendering trains available to commuters and curbing the necessity for busses to transport people between stations.
“While residents are commended for their patience during these trying times, we are reminded of the inconvenience this caused to thousands of people who had to start their journey more than a hour earlier to be at work on time every morning and who in turn, also arrived home well into the night,” said Cllr Beetge.
Pavement replacement at ASC
Following approval to replace the pavement leading off Riverside Road and into the municipal property utilised by the Amanzimtoti Sports Centre (ASC), work hampered by a combination of bad weather and initial questionable workmanship appears to be back on schedule.
Pedestrian walkways on Beach Road
The replacement of sections of concrete pedestrian walkways by asphalted surfaces along the western side of Beach Road has been completed.
“Authorisation to surface the eastern side is still awaited.”
Road markings
Following several concerns regarding the lack of road markings after the re-surfacing of several roads in ward 97, contractors commenced with road markings last weekend, which they hope to be signed off for completion by the engineer within the next few days.
Rogies Park
Following several complaints regarding the condition of Rogies Park in Beach Road, a site meeting with Durban Solid Waste, the parks department, business support and tourism was facilitated on Tuesday, 11 October, following which commitment was confirmed to clean the park prior the start of the weekend.
“The park on the corner of Kingsway and Link Road has already been cleaned and railings on the corner of Beach and Link roads have been painted.”
Street lights
While there has been a positive response towards repairing faulty street lights, residents are encouraged to continue reporting faulty street lights to 080-131-3111.
“Supply street names and light pole numbers and secure a reference number for follow-up purposes.”
Low or no water pressure
Water supply into the Metro has been reduced by bulk suppliers to the point where the municipality had no other choice but to reduce water supply to residential dwellings.
“The implementation of water-shedding took its toll on old infrastructure which risked failures to the system when flow was re-introduced.
This recently rendered the northern section of town without water for close on four days.
The department struggled to first locate a damaged pipe running under a bridge, having to cut back virgin bush to gain access and getting bogged down in knee-deep mud as rain continued pouring down.
This resulted in progress grinding to a halt as vehicles couldn’t move nor welding be completed.”
Despite these obstacles, flow was re-established, although with one elbow on the pipe still leaking. Following more rain earlier last week, the repair was attended to during the day towards the latter part of last week, thereby rendering residents with water in the early evening.
“During the last weeks, we have also been inundated with enquiries regarding low or no water pressure and residents are requested to note that the reduced flow will not allow multiple devices to be operated simultaneously.
There have, however, been several instances where flow reducers were fitted incorrectly which had to be rectified.
Complaints can be lodged with the engineering department on 080-131-3013 and a reference number obtained for follow-up purposes. Residents are requested to be clear on what exactly the problem is, so that the department can prioritise accordingly.”
Verge cutting and weed spraying
Contracts for both verge cutting and weed spraying along road edges and pedestrian walkways have been confirmed and verge cutting has already commenced in certain areas.
