RUSTENBURG HERALD - RUSTENBURG - Since opening last week, the Rustenburg Herald has been inundated with complaints from disgruntled motorists, complaining about the state of roads in and around the Rustenburg City - which have been riddled with potholes - some of which, the only way to avoid them, is to endanger other motorists. Following these complaints the Rustenburg Herald editorial team posed the following questions to RLM concerning potholes, and this is their response: Issues raised: “There are certain roads in town where it is impossible to stay on the driver’s side of the street and cars have to swerve into the lane of oncoming traffic to avoid potholes. The situation is dire and becoming out of control.
“The citizens of Rustenburg (and surrounds) need answers and information on tangible action plans that are in place to rectify the situation. Rustenburg Herald would like to inform the citizens of our town about the solutions that RLM has in place.”
Response:
How much (in rand value) has been allocated to the upkeep of roads in the next two months (before the end of the financial year)?
The Directorate Roads and Transport has a remaining budget of R 6 069 002 for patching of streets, which involves pothole repairs and to keep the road in a good riding condition and includes the resealing/resurfacing of the roads to extend the life expectancy of the infrastructure.
Which areas in towns will be the focal points to improve road infrastructure?
The City/CBD will be the focus area as well as the surrounding areas, priority will be given to intersections and mobility roads that requires rehabilitation/resealing.
Are there any plans in place to re-tar entire sections of roads that are in a complete state of disrepair – such as Molen Street, Lucas Street, Sonneblom Street etc?
The internal teams have already commenced with the repairs of potholes in and around the CBD, including numerous potholes that developed as a result of persistent rainfall. The procurement of service providers to render specialised rehabilitation/resealing of roads is at advanced stage, particularly repairs of surface damage of severe mobility roads (i.e. Molen Street) in line with maintenance plans.
Filling potholes provides only a temporary solution – what long term solutions does RLM have in place to improve road infrastructure?
Filling potholes is for repairing the damaged road surfaces in areas where there is surface failure. In the interim, severe roads would be rehabilitated/resealed and hot asphalt treatment would prioritised over cold asphalt.
The long-term strategy comprises of the conditional assessments that is currently conducted as part of the Roads Masterplan review would guide recommended treatment method that is relevant for each type of failure (eg routine maintenance, special maintenance, rehabilitation, resurfacing or reconstruction) and associated costing for the treatment.
In your opinion, is the City at Work programme providing a tangible difference in the state of roads (as citizens don’t believe that it is)?
The City at Work program has left a positive/ good impact on the communities that were covered as citizens benefited from all services offered by council including marking of streets, cleaning of stormwater channels, blading of gravel roads and many other municipal services. The pictorial evidence can be made available, the current backlog has been exacerbated by the persistent rainfall.
