Prestondale metal speed humps illegal

THE metal speed humps scattered throughout Meridian Drive in uMhlanga are illegal. That’s according to eThekwini Transport Authority’s (ETA) Carlos Esteves who was addressing residents at a public meeting last week. The meeting sought to highlight the constant speeding on the roads around Prestondale. He said the city were in a legal battle to get the humps removed.

Several residents reacted with anger when this fact was brought up with many questioning why the city had not ripped them off the road. Esteves’ anodyne response was that certain processes had to be followed before they could be removed.

Councillor Heinz de Boer, however, said he thought the speed humps, though illegal, had curbed speeding on that stretch of road.

“The humps have stopped illegal drag racing from occurring on that road. The city have said the current humps don’t comply with their specifications but maybe we need to start moving away from the idea of concrete speed humps. They don’t stop speeding, in fact some drivers maintain their speed going over some of them. The gradients are not as steep as they were. Why has the city not changed its policy? We need to look at alternate less costly technology, like rubber speed humps or the metal conical shaped bubbles around Gateway,” he said.

De Boer said ultimately the city had to make the final decision to make.

“I do think the ETA are setting a poor precedent by not having them removed. The issue ultimately needs to be settled between the association that manages the area and the city,” he concluded.