Edenvale residents feel left in the dark regarding the construction of the Laurie Road Circle in Illiondale.
“If residents or business owners using the Laurie Road Circle are wondering why, once again, there is no construction taking place, they need look no further than the questionable tender awards and lack of hands-on involvement from Ekurhuleni Metro’s Roads Department officials,” said Ward 18 councillor, Clr Heather Hart.
Clr Hart said there is no doubt that the circle is the correct intervention required to allow for access into Laurie Road from Aitken and Cecil Awret roads to calm traffic down at this point and that when ultimately completed, these same residents and business owners, who are understandably complaining now, will be much happier.
“In the meantime it is simply untenable that the metro again allowed this construction to stall for the third time,” she said.
“The project commenced at the end of 2013 but was delayed due to a fire hydrant water line not appearing on the site drawings and thus a separate contractor needed to be appointed to undertake that which stalled the project until the end of February 2014,” said Clr Hart.
“This delay must be laid at the feet of both the metro and the then consulting engineer, but not those of the construction company. The roads contractor moved back on site around March 2014 but not much work could be done because it was ascertained that the project had been under-scoped by R1-million, again presumably by the then consulting engineers. Thus insufficient budget had been allocated to the project.
“Unfortunately, because budget allocations had already been made for the 2014/2015 financial year, no budget was available to complete the project. This is evidence of the poor project management within the metro, which is well documented in budget after budget. In July 2015 the project recommenced, a year after a further budget allocation had been made, but this was only after the occurrence of a fatal accident and much pressure being brought to bear by myself and Ward 19 councillor, Clr Bill Rundle.
“It was apparent within a few months that the contractor was not going to make the initial completion deadline of October 19 and it was extended to November 19. However, even that could not be achieved, and while they were put on notice by the metro, this was not enforced and they were allowed to attempt to complete the circle by December 19, which again did not materialise.
“Their contract has now ended and thus the metro has no option but to await the appointment of a new contractor by DBSA, which has been appointed by the metro to manage its tender processes after recent cases of serious irregularities were uncovered.
“Unfortunately it is feared that, as in the case of the Illiondale Outfall Sewer, a project that collapsed in November 2011 due to the appointment of another contractor that could not fulfil its obligations, I do not expect there to be a sense of urgency with regard to the completion of the circle. “Unfortunately, I am in the hands of the powers that be, but I ask that letters of complaints be sent to me at heather.hart@ekurhuleni.gov.za so that I can forward them to the relevant officials to keep up the pressure – the objective being not only to speed up the appointment of a new contractor, but also to grade and water the detour,” said Clr Hart.
The NEWS requested comment from Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality by January 28 at 3pm.
On February 17 a second request for comment by February 19 was forwarded to the metro. At the time of going to print, no comment had been received.
