JMPD to probe the closure of Austin Road as JRA deny that they are responsible
Midrand Reporter's query alerted the JMPD to the portion of Austin Road that has been closed off since 1995 or 1996.
The Johannesburg Metro Police Department spokesperson Xolani Fihla says the department was not aware of the closed portion of Austin Road.
This is as it is still unclear and a mystery who closed the almost 2km of road in Glen Austin with big concrete and steel bollards.
In an article, JRA denies being behind the closure of Austin Road in 1996, [Week ending 21 July], the Johannesburg Road Agency (JRA) said they were not responsible for the road closure.
Midrand Reporter then asked Fihla if JMPD was aware of the blocked road, he said, “The JMPD was not aware that the portion of the road was closed off. He added, “At this present moment, the JMPD does not know who may have closed the road off. JMPD officers went to investigate the matter and from observation, it’s been closed for a long time”.Fihla said they were going to probe this as the road agency also denies the allegations leveled against them by a Glen Austin resident.
However, a resident, who has been living in Glen Austin for 32 years, remains adamant that the agency closed the road around 1995 or 1996. The resident, Belynda Nauschutz questioned who might have had the resources to bring the crane truck that had to be used to offload the huge steel and concrete bollards used to block the road. “Do they think the residents have the equipment and the concrete blocks lying around and installed them (bollards) themselves? When we had the meeting in 2017, staff from JRA were present, if the bollards were “illegal” why didn’t they mention it at the meeting?” said Nauschutz.
However, JRA spokesperson, Bertha Peters-Scheepers denied responsibility regarding the closure, saying JRA is not responsible for closing the road. “It should be noted that the closure of a road by anybody other than the responsible entity is against the law and such incidents should be reported to the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department [JMPD],” said Peters-Scheepers. Motorists coming from Olifantsfontein Road using Austin cannot access George because of the concrete and steel bollards.
Related article:
Austin Road in Glen Austin left in shambles as it’s allegedly not graded and maintained regularly
