“Following a large number of serious accidents on Kyalami Main Road at the intersection of Maple and Ash roads, some of them fatal and mostly at night, [I] requested a City and Provincial task team to investigate what needs to be done in order to prevent the recurrence,” said Mendelsohn in a written response to Fourways Review.
He said the imposition of a lower speed limit on that stretch of road was one of the safety measures which was introduced. Other measures would be the installation of more visible overhead traffic lights and a warning sign at the intersection.
Motorists were fuming that the speed limit on Main Road had been decreased without any public notice, and there were claims that Metro police were handing out fines for speeding. One motorist, Cathi Collins, said unsuspecting motorists were being trapped daily by traffic cops along the 60km/h stretch.
Another motorist, Stephanie Wright, said she was slapped with a speeding fine along that stretch of road. “I am livid,” she said.
“There is absolutely no reason why this entire stretch of road can’t be 100km/h.”
The same sentiments were expressed by resident Diane Logie. “Seriously,” she said. “That is wide open road like William Nicol Drive. It even verges on being a rural road, so why drop the speed limit? Other than catching people for fines.”
However, Kyalami resident Kathrine Lazic expressed a different view.
“We have lived on this stretch of road for the past 31 years and the number of accidents we have seen, heard or witnessed over this time is well into the hundreds,” she said.
Lazic speculated that widening the road would not lessen the carnage, but would make the situation worse.
She felt the fury directed at the traffic police over the change in the speed limit was unwarranted and misplaced.
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