JRA introduces non-metal manhole covers
Thieves illegally sell these covers to scrap yards and get paid R80 to R150 for each one.
Pedestrians and motorist are urged to be cautious when walking and driving in the Roodepoort CBD.
Amin Ebrahim, who has owned a shop in the Roodepoort CBD for years, said that the CBD has never looked as dirty as it does now. “The municipality is not taking care of the CBD. It is never cleaned; there are potholes and missing manhole covers all over the town. What is the municipality doing?” he asked.
“On 28 March I called Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA) to report a missing manhole cover next to one of my shops at the corner of Croft and Van Wyk Streets. They gave me reference number 800 385 2614 and I was told that the turnaround time is three working days. However it has been more than 11 working days now and the matter has still not been attended to,” he said.
The Record is awaiting comment from the JRA spokesperson, Bertha Scheepers.
In the mean time, we did some investigation into why so many cast-iron and steel manhole covers and drainage grates are being stolen.
It has come to light that thieves illegally sell these covers to scrap yards and get paid between R80 and R150, depending on how much they weigh. Some of the covers can weigh up to 140 kilograms or more.
According to IOL News, the JRA has introduced non-metal manhole covers and drainage grates to replace the metal ones that are stolen regularly. The City of Johannesburg and the JRA are experiencing huge financial losses due to theft of steel road infrastructure assets such as manhole covers and frames, kerb inlet covers, water meter covers, sewer manhole covers, channel posts and guard rails, traffic poles, bridge railings and other items.
Do you perhaps have more information pertaining to this story? Email us at roodepoortrecord@caxton.co.za (remember to include your contact details) or phone us on 011 955 1130.
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