Work on covering Umbilo canal underway

WORK on covering the Alan Patron Road aqueduct is underway again following the lifting of some of the lockdown restrictions.

This area has been a bone of contention for the Umbilo Business Forum (UBF) for many years.

The canal has been used as an open ablution facility by the many homeless in the area resulting in an overpowering stench and turning the area into an eyesore.

ALSO READ: Umbilo businesses fume over area degradation

There have also been reports of sewage seeping into the canal.

The canal has also been used by cardboard sellers, who wet the cardboard before selling it on to waste companies.

The sellers are paid per weight of the cardboard and paper they collect, and leave the area in a mess which consequently clogs up pipes and drains in the area.

Ian Campbell-Gillies from the UBF said the degeneration of the canal area was an ongoing concern, and that covering the canal was as a result of pressure by the UBF.

“As a result of the decision not to dig out Clairwood Racecourse as a harbour extension, Sydney Road has borne the brunt of an unplanned change to a ‘Back-of-Port’ service area. The UBF created pressure to cover the area between Gale and Sydney Roads on the Alan Paton aqueduct as a pressure relief valve for congestion on Sydney Road, and to create a more inviting access for shoppers and business visits to Sydney Road,” he said, adding that the project initially started at the end of 2019.

ALSO READ: City’s failing sewage system needs urgent attention

Campbell-Gillies said the UBF had put in a suggestion to the eThekwini Transport Authority that the area would be best utilised as a truck staging area.

At the UBF AGM last November, the proposal to use this space for the establishment of a large scale truck stop was addressed. Businesses that hold siding rights were encouraged to relinquish these, which was said would clear the way for the process to go ahead and get trucks off Sydney Road.

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