Councillor walks ‘road of death’
ROSEBANK - FOLLOWING the Metrobus crash on Jan Smuts Avenue in which three people died and 63 were injured on 24 April, councillor Tim Truluck and other representatives of Ward 117 visited the scene and conducted a general inspection of the road.
This section of Jan Smuts , Avenueknown as the Saxonwold Bends, has been dubbed by Truluck and the members of Ward 117 as the ‘road of death’.
“A walk along the 1.4km stretch of road revealed multiple symptoms of urban decay of the road and sidewalk infrastructure,” said Truluck of the stretch of road from Wells Avenue in Parkwood to Westwold Way at Zoo Lake in Saxonwold.
Truluck said before the accident occurred, there had been an intense, yet short downpour, and because the stormwater drains on that stretch of road were full of vegetation and litter, it contributed to the flooding of the road.
“Litter was also prevalent throughout the walk, mostly it was plastic bags and other litter, but there was also some old building material on the sidewalks,” he said.
Click here to read about the Metro Bus crash.
Truluck emphasised in his weekly newsletter that “the bus crash was an accident waiting to happen and there might be many more if the road’s infrastructure was not improved”.
“The shattered windscreens and other detritus [including a dry wreath] marking where the accident happened, had not been cleared by the date of the walk on 17 May,” he stated in the newsletter.
However, Truluck did note that repairs had been done to the barrier which had been damaged in the accident.
Details: ttruluck@gmail.com
