McGrath Avenue in Witpoortjie has been the scene of many accidents in the past two months, with the latest one being fatal.
The councillor for Ward 71, René Benjamin worked with the Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA) and its contractors, Elect Assure, to make changes to the roads in this area, thus assuring the safety of not only motorists, but pedestrians as well.
Drivers tend to drive down McGrath Avenue at high speed, lose control of their vehicles, slide across Nassau Street and crash into the wall of the house opposite the end of McGrath Avenue.
Traffic engineers came out to inspect McGrath Avenue, and suggested that the normal pedestrian crossing should be changed to a raised pedestrian crossing. A second speed hump was also added a little further down the road. The JRA also put up a crash barrier on Nassau Street, at the end of McGrath Avenue, in front of the house that vehicles tend to crash into, to improve safety.
In Dirkie Uys Avenue, which runs past Princess Primary School, a speed hump was also added. This was done to reduce the speed at which motorists are able to safely drive down this road, and to ensure the safety of the school children crossing the road.
Bertha Scheepers, the Operations Manager at JRA said, “We are committed to providing quality roads that are accessible, safe and livable for the Johannesburg community.
These changes were approved and implemented as a matter of urgency to improve the safety of children crossing the road.”
Do you think these measures are enough to improve the situation on McGrath Avenue?
Tell us what you think.
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