GEORGE NEWS - The South African National Roads Agency SOC Ltd (SANRAL) is urgently appealing to residents of various townships and other role players in and around George to assist in putting a stop to the vandalism of road infrastructure along the N2 where safe walkways are being provided.
This has a dramatic impact on the completion of the R43 million budget which is allocated by Treasury for road infrastructure i.e. contributions from the tax payer.
The purpose-built walkways, that stretch over a distance of about 8 km along the N2 between the York Street Interchange and the Garden Route Mall, is designed to provide safe access for residents of nearby residential areas (Thembalethu, Pacaltsdorp, Lawaaikamp and Ballotsview) along the N2.
These walkways provide safe movement for pedestrians during the day and evening and has experienced the incorrigible behaviour of vandalism by its own community.
“It is a well-known fact that approximately 40% of all deaths on South African roads are pedestrians. They are the most vulnerable group of all road users and road safety is an important priority for SANRAL,” comments Kobus van der Walt, SANRAL Regional Manager WR.
“The deliberate and wilful destruction of the network jeopardizes not only the safety of pedestrians from the various communities which it is designed to assist but also the livelihood of a number of workers on the project.”
To ensure that pedestrians do not cross the highway at will, part of the 2m high welded mesh fence erected along the N2, separating the pathways from the freeway, has also been damaged and will need to be replaced. This impacts a total of seven subcontractors which have been appointed to carry out different aspects of the work whom are only paid once the work has been completed.
The destruction of fences also allows stray animals to gain access to the freeway, causing fatal accidents.
Van der Walt says the targeted spend on SMME’s working on the project amounts to R24,3m and the targeted spend on labour is R12,2m with key elements of the project using locally sourced labour and at any one time about 210 workers are, among other things, busy laying bricks, building walkways and erecting fences.
He says the rolling terrain makes the project more amenable to labour enhanced construction as heavy construction vehicles cannot operate in these conditions. This necessitates the use of manual labour to build the pathways on the steep slopes.
“This project has the added advantage of providing employment to a greater number of people from the George area,” says van der Walt.
Also damaged are the electrics housed in concrete poles on which 177 energy efficient LED lights will be mounted along the pathways enabling pedestrians to move safely at night to their homes.
A key feature of the project is a new pedestrian bridge which has been constructed alongside the N2.
This bridge provides safe access for pedestrians and cyclists, across the railway line at Meul River from their homes to their places of work and has been damaged by fire, burning the rubber bridge bearings.
The question has to be asked: Why destroy infrastructure built for a community's use and benefit?
“I’m appealing to leaders of the local community to help put a stop to the vandalism of infrastructure which has been designed to better the lives of those living in the George area,” concludes van der Walt.
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