The sidewalks that run alongside 7th Avenue in Parktown North have become increasingly degraded, especially in the last two years, said Parktown North resident, Steve Kruger.
Kruger, who worked for the Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA) for 22 years, said 7th Avenue is a particularly important road because it is one of the few arterial routes in Johannesburg.
“Because it is a Class 3 arterial road it attracts a lot of services like Telkom etc. In addition to that, Putco busses and taxis bring a lot of pedestrian traffic.”
The sidewalk is littered with large holes and crumbling tar as well as the remnants of work from City Power and Joburg Water.
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Kruger added that the issue also lies with private business owners who do not clean up the sidewalks outside their businesses. He said when he worked for the JRA there were sidewalks in Randburg that you could eat off because they were so clean.
Lee Young from the Parkhurst North Residents Association said they have to wait to see if the JRA approves the budget in order to re-do the sidewalk. Young said that although the JRA usually does their budget in March or April there was no telling when residents would find out about it.
The JRA has recently allocated a budget to hire more staff but their focus is currently on dealing with the backlog of road repairs.
The ward councillor for Parktown North, Tim Truluck said at the moment it is very difficult to address problems with the sidewalks because the main focus is on fixing the roads. “It will change but not quickly, I would say don’t say the whole sidewalk needs to be fixed, rather try reporting two or three problems at a time because they will get round to it. I’d say celebrate the small victories.”
Tell us about any problems you have had with the sidewalks in your area on WhatsApp 079 439 5345.
