Residents of Fairmount are threatening to sue Johannesburg Roads Agency if the utility does not come and fix the potholes in Elray Street.
They claim they have tried to get the agency to come and do the job but instead they ignore them and their cars are being damaged by these potholes.
David Lichtenstein, a resident of the area, said for the past two months they have been trying to get the City of Joburg to address their problem but to no avail. He provided reference numbers to the North Eastern Tribune as proof that they have reported the potholes to the agency since February.
“This is now going on for five months since we reported the problem but they are not coming through to fix them,” he said, adding that they were really fed-up with the situation.
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“Already two of my neighbours had to repair their car tyres because of the potholes on our street. This is ridiculous… we are paying taxes for our roads to be fixed and maintained and when we report the problems they ignore us.”
Residents are now threatening to sue the City for the damages to their cars.
Roads agency spokesperson Bertha Scheepers blamed the problem on heavy rains but said the agency was committed to serving the residents of the City and to providing road infrastructure that was accessible and safe.
Scheepers said the Mayor of Joburg Herman Mashaba had allocated additional funds in the budget to assist the agency in dealing with the tremendous pothole backlog that arose following heavy rains earlier this year, and they had made significant strides in resolving these outstanding issues.
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“The safety of road users is paramount and even where a pothole cannot be immediately attended to, once alerted, the agency will ensure the area is made safe either with a temporary filling or by placing a yellow jersey barrier over the affected area,” said Scheepers.
Asked if motorists were eligible to be compensated for the damages caused by the potholes on the roads, Scheepers said, “The formal claim process will determine the outcome of the claim. Once lodged, the matter is investigated.”
Details: www.jra.org.za
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