Action demanded from Metrorail

The petition, which has over 680 signatures, was delivered by Clr Mary Goby, on behalf of residents in Western Extension and Lakefield.

It is calling for action to be taken on the 4km railway line that runs from Dunswart to Bunyan Street.

Willie van Rensburg, customer service manager for Metrorail’s eastern region, said, on Wednesday morning, that a site inspection at the petitioned areas would be undertaken on the same day.

He said officials from Metrorail would meet with Goby and community members on April 8, to report back on what steps will be taken.

Van Rensburg said remedial measures may be implemented to alleviate some of the issues raised in the petition, before the April 8 meeting.

Residents in the area have petitioned as follows:

•  We the residents living along the railway line in Western Extension, Lakefield and Westdene have been under siege from criminals for years, it has now escalated out of control.

•  We have pleaded for help regarding upgrading of stronger fencing – to no avail. The fences are too flimsy and are cut through regularly by criminals, and we repair them at our own expense.

•  There are areas where there is no fence which is an easy access for criminals, it also makes this very dangerous, as children and animals can access the tracks.

•  The armed robberies and attacks are rising, with residents being shot, criminals escaping along the railway line and never being found.

•  There is power available on the track, but no lighting whatsoever, making it an ideal place for robbers to hide tools and stolen goods.We need these areas to be lit up, making any illegal activity visible.

• The railway line is an easy escape route for crimes committed in the area and there would be less illegal activity and more arrests.

•  Property prices have dropped to an all-time low and are having a major effect on selling the properties.

•  The grass is left to grow to extreme heights, which is an ideal hiding place for the criminals and also dangerous if the grass catches alight.

•  When the residents plant thorn bushes by the fence on the Prasa side they are removed, but they are there to deter the criminal elements entering the properties.

•  Businesses cannot continue operating at a loss because of this scourge.

•  Insurance companies are charging residents/businesses a high premium, as they live/work by the railway line.

Goby expressed her frustration at the issues raised in the petition.

“People’s lives are at risk,” she said on Wednesday.

“There have been two shootings and one death recently; I can’t have more residents shot at or killed.

“My residents’ security is the most important here.”

A Western Extension resident told the City Times how she was shot in her home, next to the railway line, in November, last year.

The woman, who does not want to be named, said she was in her yard when three men cut her electric fence and jumped over her wall from the railway line.

She said she ran into the house and latched the door behind her, while her husband assisted her in holding the door closed.

The men apparently shot three rounds through the door, with two of the rounds hitting her in the lower back.

The victim’s husband said three men held a gun to his head two months before this incident, on the same property.

They have blamed the incidents on the ease with which criminals can enter homes from the railway line.