Lambton residents living around Sinclair Road and Fifth Avenue have allegedly sent numerous complaints and signed petitions to the metro imploring them to install traffic-calming measures in the area, stating the area is a high-accident zone and needs the metro’s intervention.
“Vehicles race up and down Sinclair Road at all times of the day and night,” said Lambton resident Elaine van Deventer.
“The stop sign at the corner of Fourth Avenue and Sinclair Road gets ignored by motorists.
“Due to the long stretch of ‘clear’ road as you turn into Sinclair Road from Webber Road and drive past Fourth Avenue and Fifth Avenue towards Colin Mann Road, motorists have the opportunity to gain high speeds.
“We are tremendously concerned for the safety of the community’s children and anyone else who is using this road by means of foot or vehicle.”
According to Elaine, the community filed complaints with their councillor, Alta de Beer, and as a result a petition with 150 signatures was signed and delivered to the metro.
“The petition was ignored along with previous complaints.
“How else can we as residents make ourselves heard by the metro?” asked Elaine.
Following a three-vehicle collision on the corner of Sinclair Road and Fifth Avenue in Lambton on May 17, which left 12 people injured, the GCN contacted the metro for comment regarding the placing of traffic-calming measures in the area.
The metro acknowledged receipt of the signed petition by the Lambton residents.
“We received a petition during March 2018 and the following scenario was determined.
“The site was visited during afternoon peak time and two speed humps and a traffic signal at the entrance to Colin Mann Primary School off Sixth Avenue were noticed,” said Themba Gadebe, spokesperson for the metro.
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“The operation of the traffic signals was tested and they operated as designed.
“During the site visit, two speed humps were noticed along Sinclair Road at the entrance of the primary school and in the vicinity of the crèches opposite the school.
According to Themba, these calming devices were found to be sufficient.
Furthermore, the metro stated the following:
In South Africa, general speed limits for roads are prescribed in the National Road Traffic Act (Act No 93 of 1996) and Regulations promulgated in terms of the Act.
Such speed limits apply to roads inside and outside urban areas.
Provision has been made in the Act for the display of a speed limit other than the general speed limit.
The Act also imposes a maximum limit that may be displayed on speed limit signs.
Driving at excessive speeds is often a contributing factor in collisions and particularly in the severity of collisions.
The severity of collisions increases with speeds due to the increase in kinetic energy at high speeds.
Speed limits are normally established for favourable operating conditions and not for poor conditions.
It would be unreasonable to establish speed limits for poor conditions and then apply such limits during favourable conditions.
Speed limits are, therefore, the maximum speeds allowed under favourable conditions and drivers are required to decrease their speeds when conditions are unfavourable.
A further consideration is that no speed limit can be regarded as an indication of safe speed.
There is a risk of a collision at all speeds, regardless of whether a vehicle is travelling at a speed lower or higher than the speed limit.
A speed limit is not a sharp cut-off point above which travel suddenly becomes unsafe or below which it is safe to travel. Risk increases with speed, but there is no speed at which there is no risk of a collision.
However, it is not only high speed that leads to collisions, but speeds that are excessive for circumstances.
The risk of a collision depends on various factors, such as day and night conditions, weather, visibility, traffic, the road, as well as the road environment (i.e. the road passes by a school).
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Drivers should therefore adapt their speeds in accordance to the prevailing conditions on a road.
Circumstances under which drivers must reduce speeds include, among other things, the following:
• sharp horizontal curves
• junctions and crossings (even when the driver has the right of way)
• limited sight distance due to horizontal and vertical curves or any other sight obstructions
The driver must be able to reduce speed and, if necessary, stop the vehicle should an obstruction occur on the road.
• poor visibility due to weather conditions or when travelling at night
• increased density of traffic or when stopped or parked vehicles are encountered along a road
• pedestrians, cyclists and other non-motorised forms of traffic.
“With the above-mentioned background, there are no grounds for additional speed humps along Sinclair Road and motorists should, therefore, adapt their speeds in accordance with the prevailing conditions on a road,” said Gadebe.
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