Over the past year the City of Johannesburg has fixed 117,483 potholes, resulting in an increase of 26,945 or 22% more pothole repairs compared to the previous period (2015/2016).
To address the crisis, the Executive Mayor, Cllr Herman Mashaba, declared a “War on Potholes” and committed an additional R88 million to fast-track the repair of failing road surfaces.
I am delighted to confirm that through our positive interventions, the Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA), the City’s entity responsible for the maintenance of our roads, has resolved the crisis by working overtime on evenings and weekends, utilizing R60 million for much needed pothole repair material and equipment. The funds were also utilized in appointing contractors to supplement internal capacity to assist with the backlog. Added to this, R28 million has been provided to recruit the 40% JRA road maintenance staff capacity shortages.
– Executive Mayor, Herman Mashaba
While the interventions have made a progressive impact on the quality of roads and public safety, pothole repairs are a short term fix to ensure the safety of all road users. While resurfacing and/or reconstruction of roads remain the long term solutions to improving the overall condition of the road network.
Johannesburg’s 13 428 km of roads infrastructure is ageing and has not been sufficiently maintained over many years. This means that potholes, which are a sign of failing surface and structural layers, will continue forming with each new rainy season. While the current budget allocation for resurfacing and reconstruction does not fully address these backlogs, it is the intention of the City to gradually increase the budgets for these activities over time.
I would like to thank our residents for their continued patience and support as we work towards improving the City’s infrastructure and building a better Johannesburg.
– Executive Mayor, Herman Mashaba