THE poor state of the D535 road in Cliffdale, which was featured in this newspaper recently, is back under the spotlight after Rafeek Shah, DA MPL on the transport portfolio, requested the urgent intervention of Mr S Gumbi of the Department of Transport in the matter.
The article, which appeared in The Hilltop (29 May), addressed the concerns of residents who have become increasingly frustrated after attempting for more than 15 years to get the road tarred or maintained.
The road, which runs from Shongweni and alongside the M13 freeway along Key Ridge, consists mainly of a dirt road with a section of tarred road which is full of potholes.The dirt road is very uneven and ridged with several dongas where the road has washed away.
In his e-mail to Mr Gumbi, Shah states, “I draw your attention to the state of disrepair of the above-mentioned road. It would seem that the road has not been attended to for a number of years. Many accidents have occurred as a result of the prevailing bad road conditions, resulting in injuries and damage to property. It continues to pose a serious threat to the welfare of road-users. Please direct the relevant departmental officials to remedy the situation as a matter of urgency.”
In a response to queries by The Hilltop, Shah said the Department of Transport always claimed poverty whenever there was talk about refurbishing, resurfacing or repairing provincial roads in urgent need of attention.
“They always claim poverty, saying that budgetary constraints do not allow them to fix every road that needs repair, therefore they operate on the basis of priority. If proper accounting procedures and supply chain management rules were adhered to, the department would have the much-needed funds to repair all the roads that require attention,” he said.
