Finally, Atlas Road to be lit up
After six years of sustained DA pressure, the Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport has finally agreed to enter into a service level agreement with the Ekurhuleni metro to ensure that streetlights along Atlas Road are switched on.
This is according to MPL Graham Gersbach, who is the DA spokesperson for Roads.
“In a written response to a DA question, repairs to the lights along Atlas Road will commence only after the service level agreement is in place; this is expected to be concluded by the end of November 2014,” says Gersbach.
“The main reason for the outages on Atlas Road is due to recurring cable theft.
“MEC for Community Safety Sizakele Nkosi-Malobane indicated that she is aware of the dangers posed by the outages and, on numerous occasions, her department has taken up the matter with the Department of Roads and Transport.
“In the past three years, 70 cases relating to motor vehicle crimes have been opened at the Kempton Park SAPS. As a result, four police officers have been deployed daily to the area to ensure the safety of motorists.
“Despite the efforts of the Department of Community Safety, it is evident that as long as the road remains dark, it will continue to be a hunting ground for criminals.
“Six years and numerous incidents of crime later, it is an indictment on the Department of Roads and Transport’s ability to carry out its mandate.
“The department needs to take proactive steps to carry out preventative maintenance and minimise losses resulting from vandalism, by encasing cables in concrete and securing sub-stations and other equipment in metal cages – similar to Sanral’s security measures along the R21.”
He says the DA will request a copy of the service level agreement once it is completed, and project plan – with timelines, detailing the monitoring and maintenance responsibilities.
