Nico de Jager, DA shadow MMC for Transportation in the City of Johannesburg explained, “The city should aim to consistently maintain and repair damaged road infrastructure to avoid unnecessary expenditure.”
The DA has attacked the city’s three-year project aimed at repairing about 435km of major roads in Johannesburg, saying that “the actual delivery of these services has to be questioned”.
De Jager said most of the budget, which was approved and outlined by the city council, covered operational costs rather than the actual repair of the roads.
“At least 60 percent of this budget covers operational costs over a three-year period, including salaries and rent. Out of this investment, only R105 million will actually be spent on resurfacing and maintaining roads.”
De Jager said at least 3 200km of roads needed to be rebuilt, requiring a R16 billion investment.
De Jager also claimed there was no additional budget, and alleged the city had misled the public on the way the current budget would be utilised and on the amount that was allocated to the road repairs.
Despite numerous attempts to contact the City of Johannesburg, officials had yet to respond by the time of going to publication.
