New JRA app to log road issues
JOBURG - The Johannesburg Roads Agency's managing director Skhumbuzo Macozoma said that it was in the test phase of the agency's mobile application. Users can report road and infrastructure issues related to the agency but Macozoma also urged users to report employees who are spotted not doing their jobs.
Joburg residents will soon be able to report road and infrastructure-related issues via a mobile application.
In a bid to address the challenges the public faces trying to contact Joburg Connect and the city council’s call centre, the Johannesburg Roads Agency hopes to improve communication between the public and the agency with the Find and Fix app.
The app would assist the public to report potholes, faulty traffic signals, storm water drains, missing manhole covers and other infrastructure issues related to the agency, said the agency’s managing director Skhumbuzo Macozoma.
The app allows users to provide pictures which will assist the agency to assess the fault and establish what is required to address it.
The app also includes a geotagging feature allowing accurate GPS co-ordinates to be added to photo evidence, making it easier for the agency to efficiently locate the area in question and dispatch a team.
Find and Fix also provides a save for later feature, whereby users can save images and information pertaining to complaint under their unsubmitted items and lodge the complaint at a later stage. The agency’s spokesperson Bertha Peters-Scheepers said this feature was important as the agency was not encouraging motorists to use their phones while driving.
Referring to the “other” option on the app, Macozoma encouraged users to also report agency employees who are not fulfilling their roles.
“If you see any JRA employees lying under a tree when they’re supposed to be working… use that ‘other’ button, I want to know.”
On 24 April, the agency launched the test phase of app, which is the first of its kind in the southern hemisphere, and invited the public to participate in the testing process.
“We call on the citizen to join testing this exciting and innovative application… Residents can download the beta testing app for Microsoft platforms from 25 April, [for] Android phones on 2 May, and [for] iOS systems on 9 May,” Macozoma said.
All complaints logged during the test period will be addressed by the agency.
Once officially launched, the app will be free and can be downloaded for most mobile Operating System platforms such as Windows Mobile, Android, and iOS for Apple.
After the testing phase, the app will go live on 14 May and will be available on Windows Mobile from then, while it will become available to Android and Apple iOS users on 16 and 22 May respectively.
Presently, the app is not available on Blackberry handsets but the agency has not ruled out developing the app for these devices at a later stage.
