Council faults on promises
And despite an outcry from the community and the executive mayor of Ekurhuleni, nothing has been done to stop the speeding along Terrace Road.
A year has passed since the notorious Terrace Road claimed the lives of Wesley Simpson, Tamlyn Lewis, Slade Matthews and Angelia Maree.
And despite an outcry from the community and the executive mayor of Ekurhuleni, nothing has been done to stop the speeding along Terrace Road.
Promises were made that cameras would be installed, first by mid-2013 and then by the end of 2013.
At the end of 2013, the process to have cameras installed on Terrace Road was scrapped and started again, from scratch.
Continually over the last five years, the community has raised concerns that speeding on Terrace road was increasing and would end in fatalities.
In 2011, council stated that Terrace Road, among others, did not warrant traffic calming measures.
The then-spokesperson for the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality (EMM), Mr Zweli Dlamini, said Terrace Road was classified as an arterial collector road which meant mobility was its main function.
In February 2013, just two months before the fatal accident, one motorist was recorded travelling at 151 km/h on Terrace Road.
An outraged community hit back at council stating that it was time for something to be done before lives are lost.
The outcry of the community fell on deaf ears and on April 5, 2013, four young lives were lost in one accident.
Following the accident, the executive mayor of Ekurhuleni, Clr Mondli Gungubele, called on the municipality to look into ways to minimise accidents on Terrace Road.
Two weeks after the accident, the EMM stated that installing speed cameras on Terrace Road could take months and that in the meantime, the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department (EMPD) would continue with periodic operations to catch speeding motorists.
In May last year, Councillor Nicola da Silva questioned whether by ignoring the calls of the community, the municipality was guilty of culpable homicide.
She highlighted a number of serious accidents at the same intersection over the past eight years.
“In 2006, a municipal refuse truck lost control and drove over a bakkie, in 2007 a speeding vehicle ploughed through the fence of a house, in 2008 two vehicles racing resulted in one rolling and in 2009, the intersection was closed to land a helicopter,” said Clr Da Silva.
At the time, Clr Barbara Naylor had fought for traffic calming measures in Terrace Road.
After the last municipal elections, this fight was taken over by councillors Bill Rundle and Heather Hart.
During May 2010, the intersection was closed three times while emergency services worked on accident scenes.
In 2011, a vehicle travelling at high speed attempted to take the corner into Columbus Road and skidded through the fence of the funeral home.
“At night this road morphs into a racetrack. Accidents as a result of speed are more dangerous at night, especially for emergency workers,” said Clr Da Silva.
At the same time, council confirmed that red tape was halting the installation of permanent speed cameras on Terrace Road.
When residents and businesses offered to pay for the installation of the cameras, council did not object but encouraged community members to rather highlight such issues at the appropriate forums.
The spokesperson for the EMPD, Chief Superintendent Wilfred Kgasago, said before any cameras could be installed, the EMM would need to appoint a contractor though a tender process.
The appointed contactor would be responsible for dealing with the R10-million contract.
In July last year, the NEWS confirmed that speeding on Terrace Road was still occurring.
Through April, May and June 2013 alone, 342 motorists were caught speeding on Terrace Road.
In September 2013, the NEWS received information that the contract for the installation of cameras on Terrace Road was not awarded.
This meant that the entire process would start again.
Last week, Edenvale resident Mr Brian Kolbe again questioned when something will be done.
“On Wednesday, April 2, a delivery motorbike was hit by a huge tipper truck at the intersection of Terrace and Fountain roads. The bike rider nearly lost his life,” said Mr Kolbe.
“On Friday morning, April 4, a motorist turning from Terrace Road into Fountain Road was almost hit by a taxi travelling west down Terrace Road so quickly that he could not stop in time for the red traffic light. He skidded sideways past the vehicle, turning into Fountain Road and into the oncoming traffic lane,” he added.
“Please do something before more people lose their lives,” said Mr Kolbe.
