CoE comments on Ward 19 pothole repairs

The City of Ekurhuleni is aware of the many potholes in Ward 19 that have yet to be repaired.

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This admission came after Ward 19’s Clr Bill Rundle took Bedfordview and Edenvale News on a tour of his ward to show us the large number of unrepaired potholes.

While driving through the ward, Rundle showed the NEWS potholes that were four years old.

According to city spokesperson Zweli Dlamini, there is a programme to rotate the patching team within the wards.
In response to the age of some of the unrepaired potholes, Dlamini said CoE experienced constraints on its finances because of increasing public needs.

He said Covid-19 had compounded this because it had reduced the rate at which daily preventative maintenance was done.

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Rundle told the NEWS that a lack of funds, tar and vehicles is one reason the potholes have not been repaired.
In response to this, Dlamini said the Edenvale Roads Depot did, in fact, have tar.

“However, a shortage of equipment and personnel hampers service delivery.”

According to Dlamini, the Edenvale Depot covers a large area ranging from the Eastgate Mall to the Atlasville area, then from Greenstone Mall to Dunswart and within those areas.

He said the depot operates with two patching teams that service the nine wards – 917, 18, 19, 20, 22, 23, 33, 36 and 920.

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When speaking about the most common causes of potholes, Dlamini said insufficient pavement thickness for traffic support and poor stormwater drainage are the culprits.

“The lifespan of a road is 10 years, and most of the roads in Ward 19 are ageing and deteriorated,” said Dlamini.

“Most of the streets in Ward 19 need rehabilitation.”