Rain and corruption delay repair of some decrepit roads in Cape Town

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Extortion, hijackings and armed robberies are among the criminal activities delaying the repair of roads in parts of Cape Town.

Councillor Rob Quintas, the member of the mayoral committee (MMC) for urban mobility, disclosed this on Wednesday in response to social media posts accusing the city of being “selective in its road maintenance projects”.

Quintas wanted “to set the record straight with regards to work that is done and why certain roads regress faster than others, particularly during the winter season”.

He explained that “extortion and other criminal activities such as hijackings and armed robberies in some areas also affect the speedy rehabilitation of roads.

“The deterioration of roads and formation of potholes during winter is a common occurrence as it is directly related to heavy rainfall. When it rains and the water accumulates on the road, vehicle tyres squeeze the water into the road pavement layer. The repeated pump action between the road surface and the tyres of the vehicles causes the road to crack, and thus potholes are formed.”

Quintas said the city was aware of road conditions after recent downpours and plans were in place to resurface routes in the current or next financial year, subject to drainage issues being resolved.

“In some parts of the city, matters are exacerbated by ongoing external factors such as illegally discharged grey water from washing machine outlets being decanted onto the road, water stand pipes next to the road being left open and running water spilling onto the road. Illegal dumping within storm water and sewer infrastructure also leads to overspills and blockages,” he said.

“We are aware of social media posts and comments from various community leaders that criticise the city’s responsiveness in some areas. The most recent complaint centred on the state of Oliver Tambo Drive in Samora Machel.

“It must be noted that Oliver Tambo Drive was resurfaced twice within the past three years; in June 2021 and again in May 2022. The cause of Oliver Tambo Drive’s deterioration can be attributed to heavy rainfall, open stand pipes left running, vandalism of infrastructure, illegal car wash establishments, illegal water and sewer connections,” Quintas said.

There were also complaints about Japhta K Masemola Road in Makhaza, Khayelitsha, where a key contributing reason for the road’s deterioration was the illegal occupation of a wetland.

“Structures have been built over critical storm water infrastructure, which prevents storm water from draining, which then floods the road, affecting the road surface. We are engaging with the human settlements department to look at possible relocation of such structures to ensure alternative drainage options are available,” he said.

“This also requires intervention from environmental management seeing that this is a wetland, before any permanent resurfacing works can be scheduled.”

Quintas said in the interim, the city would continue filling potholes under the existing wet winter conditions to ensure the road surface was drivable.

“Permanent repairs will not be effectively achieved when a road or the base layers underneath the road are still wet,” he said.

“Permanent repairs entail cutting the existing road surface around the pothole, preparing the base course, applying tack coat to the prepared base course and finally placing the hot premix, which is done after the annual rainfall period.

“The city urges residents to please refrain from throwing dishwater onto the roads and dumping solid waste items illegally. Soap, effluent and fats eat through the asphalt. If we do not stop illegal dumping into the system, we cannot guarantee that sewer spills will ever stop or even occur less frequently,” Quintas said.

“We further plead with residents to not illegally occupy canals or retention ponds, or build over our storm water infrastructure.”

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