Vandalism of road assets

The Johannesburg Roads Agency is using Transport Month to shine the spotlight on the dangers of vandalism and theft of road infrastructure.

The roads agency is the City of Johannesburg’s entity responsible for providing and maintaining road and storm water infrastructure. Transport Month seeks to highlight the significance of transport in the economy. This year’s theme is, Safe streets and transport for all.

The roads agency officials have been visiting shopping malls across the city to urge residents to be vigilant against criminal acts, which not only cost the City millions of rand every year but also puts the lives of road users and other members of the community in danger. Officials urged motorists, taxi drivers and other road users to take collective ownership of transport-related infrastructure.

The week-long roadshow, which ended on 20 October was also aimed at building active citizenry and encouraging a better-informed community of road users. Conel Cassius Mackay, manager of JRA’s Infrastructure Protection Unit, said every motorist is affected by acts of criminality.

“Normally when you approach a traffic intersection you expect to be regulated by a traffic sign. Instead, all you see are illegal adverts for body part enlargements and illegal abortions plastered over the road sign. This is dangerous because a motorist who might not be familiar with the area could end up in a serious or even fatal accident,” said Mackay.

The roads agency was joined in the campaign by Metro police and the Johannesburg Emergency Management Services. During the roadshow, residents were urged to report acts of vandalism and theft of road assets to the entity’s newly-established Infrastructure Protection Unit. JRA is also using the campaign to encourage motorists to use public transport to decongest the city’s streets and roads.

Emergency Services’ Mohamad Sharliff Mahdi said, “We’re joining forces with JRA because we’re affected by incidences such as cable theft and damage to road equipment. We provide a very important service to the community. Now, if there’s a traffic snarl-up because of a traffic light that has been vandalised, we cannot reach the scene of an emergency in time. Our response time is affected and the public becomes unhappy with our service.”

Details: 011 375 5911; protect@jra.org.za; Twitter: @MyJra; Facebook: Johannesburg Roads Agency

Read: JRA to report back to community

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