While Johannesburg Water and Johannesburg Roads Agency point fingers, repairs remain on hold

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05-03-2025
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Fourways Review
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While Fourways streets are still riddled with potholes and excavations, tensions rise between JW and the JRA, and the ward councillor demands a fix.

After some finger-pointing between Johannesburg Water (JW) and Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA) over who is responsible for the dangerous potholes and excavation that plague Fourways, finally, they have answered, but they are not ready to fix them.

In the article published by Fourways Review on the week ending February 14, 2025, Ward 115 councillor Mark van der Merwe expressed deep concerns over the deteriorating state of his ward, which is plagued by unsafe excavations and potholes.

In a follow-up to his concerns, JW Spokesperson Puleg Mopele said the excavation at the intersection of Robin and Alexander avenues, which was dug on December 20, has been handed over to JRA.

In terms of the one on the corner of Conduit and Government roads, which has been open for 8 months, she said: “We are still waiting for JRA to replace the storm water pipe before the reinstatement can be done.”

Khayalethu Gqibitol, the head of department of regional operations for JRA, said the primary cause for the lag in repairs is rooted in the issuance of late reinstatement order numbers. “JRA issues a jobbing quotation to the relevant entity, but repair work only starts only when the jobbing quotation has been accepted, and JRA is issued with a purchase order.”

In response to the safety concerns posed by open excavations, Gqibitol stated that temporary measures, such as barricading the areas, have been implemented to protect both pedestrians and motorists until the roads can be restored to their original state. “There is constant engagement with the service entity to speed up repairs.”

When asked about the anticipated timeline for permanent repairs and whether resources have been allocated to expedite the process, Gqibitol said: “The timeline largely depends on how quickly the service entities can complete their necessary repairs. JRA is prepared to reinstate roads immediately, once given direction from these entities.”

As of now, no concrete timeframe has been provided for the completion of repairs, more information will be provided once it becomes available.