FOR the past five years, the Keep Hillcrest Beautiful Association has sourced and used its own funding to pay for the clean up and maintenance of the railway line from Padley’s Crossing to Ashley Road through Hillcrest.
In a previous article in the Highway Mail, ward 18 councillor, Melanie Brauteseth, said, “The area (the railway line in her ward) is not being maintained at all and it is an open environment for any form of criminal activity and very difficult for the neighbourhood watch, SAPS or Metro to get into the areas because they are so overgrown. We need to highlight this and get the departments to clean up their areas to eliminate crime.”
Commenting on this, KHBA’s Marge Mitchell said, “Transnet does not appear to be interested in the slightest in getting this rail line cleaned up, or is unable to do so. I say this because KHBA has repeatedly entreated them, for a decade, to clean up the area, to no avail.”
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Mitchell noted that Transnet, in 2008, granted the organisation a maintenance budget, which lasted eight months, for wages for two people to clean up the invasive alien plants along the line through Hillcrest.
“George Victor of the Hillcrest Conservancy and Tony Wint of Camelot Conservancy and myself did the supervising and hard work,” said Mitchell.
She said the non-profit organisation called on South Africa’s rail giant for meetings with its horticulturalist and others and were mildly successful as a group was contracted to clear a few IAP bushes for a short period of time.
“After years of frustration, KHBA has paid for the clean-up and maintenance. The NPO works extremely hard at acquiring money for this project, which is a thankless task,” said Mitchell. “If you want something done, you have to do it yourself!”
“Thanks to George Victor and Chris Harburn who contribute cash and in-kind. Also a thank you to Hillcrest Park Neighbourhood Watch and Shaun Lyle, who keep a close eye on the security of the rail line through Hillcrest,” said Mitchell.
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