JRA to blame for flooding, says DA
Harsh words from the DA's transport spokesperson.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) indirectly pointed the finger at the Johannesburg Road Agency (JRA), saying that they are to be held responsible for the poor road conditions.
DA Transport spokesperson in Johannesburg, Councillor Nico de Jager in a statement said, “The continual rains of the last 96 hours, understaffing at depots, poor workmanship and lack of funding to expedite critical service delivery issues are to blame for the poor road conditions.
“The heart of Africa’s economy is suffering as a result of inability to move the economy of Johannesburg due to bad management practices of the road agency in previous years.
“Potholes across the City are rife with a vastly increased number being reported since the increased rainfall that started on Friday last week. Although there has been a big improvement in workmanship from the JRA since Skhumbuzo Macozoma took over in September 2012, it is the legacy of six years of poor management from before that that cannot be undone that quickly.
“The flooding of the roads as a direct result of blocked storm-water drainage systems can be linked directly to understaffed depots. Depots are responsible for the cleaning of Joburg’s storm-water systems and since this has been neglected for so many years, the task ahead is enormous.
“The quality of workmanship and lack of funding available for resurfacing of roads further exacerbate the problem when patch work is done owing to a lack of funding to resurface roads.
“Pothole repairs are often a temporary solution and not sustainable in the long run where quality resurfacing is required.”
Although De Jager believes that Macozoma has done good work to improve the service delivery and morale in the JRA in recent months, understaffing and the lack of funding remains a big problem.
The Democratic Alliance will be releasing a guide to assist residents with logging service delivery issues related to the recent high rainfall, including potholes, broken traffic lights, etc.
The guide is available on their website www.dajhb.co.za as of Tuesday 4 February.
