uMhlanga residents voice concern over drag races, speeding on M4
This comes after a portion of the road, between the uMhlanga off-ramp and eMdloti off-ramp, was reopened more than two weeks ago.
RESIDENTS of uMhlanga have expressed their concern about the late night drag racing and excessive speeding on the M4 Ruth First Highway. This comes after a portion of the road, between the uMhlanga off-ramp and eMdloti off-ramp, was reopened more than two weeks ago.
They say illegal drag racers make use of the smooth surface of the road late at night. According to some both sides of the M4 are used. Another point of contention for residents is motorists continually flouting the speed limit and the excessive revving of engines are causing a noise disturbance.
Warren Eisele, whose complex borders the M4 highway on the southbound lane, said he has noticed an upsurge in speeding.
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“It’s horrific, we’ve had several people within our complex complain about the noise levels. Throughout the day we have people revving their engines just to make a noise and spinning their wheels. In fact just outside our complex and on the opposite side of the highway (northbound lane) you can clearly see doughnut circles from guys spinning their wheels.
“On top of that we also have to combat the drag racing which has returned since the highway reopened. As residents we are deeply concerned because this type of reckless driving is going to lead to a fatal accident. This stretch of road has seen some horrible accidents in the past and I fear if this continues unabated it won’t be long before there is another fatality. The M4 has now become a speed track on the weekends,” he said.
Another resident, Roy Neale concurred with Eisele saying the drag racing and revving of engines made sleeping difficult.
“I’ve had residents who are further down in the village who hear the revving of engines. Most of these cars are supercars or kitted out to the max and their exhaust systems amplify the sound. We’ve also noticed motorbikes are doing the same since the road reopened. We need more law enforcement on the M4 to curb this type of behaviour,” he said.
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