Motorists face constant danger on South African roads from potholes. They can seriously damage vehicles and even cause fatal accidents. A 2016 News24 article mentions an interview by Wheels24 of the late Howard Dembovsky, the national chair of Justice Project South Africa. Below are his responses on how to deal with potholes. 1
What are potholes?
Road surfaces must be even and not full of potholes or hollows in the road surface. Wear and tear cause them to appear. Potholes start off small but progressively increase in size as traffic drives over them. 1
What creates potholes?
Most potholes start forming when rainwater or greywater seeps into road asphalt through surface cracks caused by high traffic volumes or lack of maintenance. 1
Who should fix potholes?
Only qualified engineers and support teams can fix potholes using specialised materials and equipment. Unqualified personnel can do more damage by trying to repair a pothole. One cannot use the simplistic approach of pouring tar or concrete into a pothole to restore it. People fixing potholes can be prosecuted because, according to the late Howard Dembovsky, it’s an offence to damage a road surface. 1
Why is there usually such a delay in repairing potholes?
Lengthy delays in fixing potholes can be due to the need for more finances or resources. It could also be because no one has reported the location of the pothole. 1
When reporting a pothole
When you contact your local call centre to report on a pothole, provide its correct location by mentioning a street name and the nearest corner. 1
Potholes in Cape Town
In 2016, Cape Town’s transport department had a benchmark of fixing a pothole within 72 hours after someone reported it. According to News24, in 2016, Cape Town’s residents informed the City hotline of a minimum of 250 potholes per week. The hotline centre passes on the information to the responsible repair team, usually within hours. Then, the team visits the pothole to evaluate the damage and either repairs it on the spot or demarcates it for repairs at a later stage. 1
Prevention is better than cure
The City workforce spends much time resurfacing and resealing road surfaces to prevent pothole formation. 1
What human resources does the City of Cape Town use to repair potholes?
In 2016, it had 47 teams from 20 depots repairing potholes in their roads. Four all-female teams also started to repair potholes. 1
What does it cost to repair potholes?
In the 2014/2015 financial year, the City of Cape Town spent R100 million on pothole repair, at a rate of 260 potholes per week. 1
Disclaimer
The purpose of this article is to highlight the dangers of potholes, their origin, and how city teams repair them.1
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This article was prepared by Eric Sandmann in his personal capacity. The views and opinions expressed in this article are the author’s own. The views and opinions in the article should not be attributed to anyone but the author unless expressly stated. Nothing in this article should be relied upon as advice, this publication is presented for informational purposes only. No person should act or refrain from acting in reliance on any information found in this article, without first obtaining proper financial advice from the appropriate professional. The author makes no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, or completeness, of any information linked from, referred to, or contained in this article. The author reserves the right, to edit and change the content of this article.