Motorists demand more traffic officers on busy intersections

MBOMBELA - Traffic is becoming more congested on the streets of the city, and this is said to be the result of insufficient traffic officers controlling traffic during loadshedding.

Motorists are battling to reach their destinations on time, because the intersections become four-way stops during load-shedding.

They are now requesting the City of Mbombela (CoM) to put additional pointsmen on duty. A motorist, Simphiwe Nyakane, said he arrived late for a job interview because he was stuck in traffic.

“I do not think I will get the job, because I arrived late. The worst part is that I borrowed a car from a friend so that I can make it on time. I even woke up early, because my interview was supposed to be at 08:15, but I ended up arriving after 09:00. I believe that if we had traffic police on the road I would have made it on time. I am pleading with the relevant department to intervene,” he said.

Walter Mdawe said, “The municipality is aware of the times and which parts of the city will be without power. Instead of deploying officers in those affected areas, they do nothing. Their job is to make sure that the roads are safe and traffic is moving. People are getting warnings for late arrivals at work and students arrive late for exams,” he said.

The CoM’s spokesperson, Joseph Ngala, said no city in the country has enough personnel to man all intersections during load-shedding, especially in the staggered manner that load-shedding is being implemented.

“The City tries to deploy officers at the busy intersections, but we must remember that not all officers are in the city centre. The city has four regions that must all be catered for,” Ngala said.

‘The City tries to deploy officers at the busy intersections, but we must remember that not all officers are in the city centre’