Light poles being vandalised
Motorists are concerned that lack of street lighting is dangerous
lem had escalated in recent months.
He said every street pole along both sides of the M7 from the N2 interchange to Southway Mall was damaged.
Other problematic roads included Bellair Road, from Albert Luthuli Hospital to Rick Turner Road, and Wakesleigh Road. The new street lights put up on the Hans Dettman Highway from the M7 to the Sasol garage have been vandalised.
“Street lights being vandalised is a widespread problem across Durban. It looks as if the same people who vandalised the street poles at the Umgeni interchange are involved in this area,” said Williams. “The reason for this rationale is that all of the poles are cut and lowered in the exact same manner.
“It seems not much is being done by law- enforcement units to catch the criminals involved in these crimes, and it affects visibility when we drive that could lead to accidents.
“These criminals are stealing light fittings and cables.”
Williams questioned the amount of money that has been spent and how much it would cost the city to repair the damage.
“These acts have caused untold destruction. I can only imagine the damage runs into millions of rands. Something needs to be done urgently to stop it.”
Another motorist, Denver Naidoo, said there should be alternative lighting on the affected roads. “Driving in areas like Solomon Mahlangu Drive is a nightmare especially when trucks are on the road. It is therefore essential that street lighting takes a priority,” he said.
Richard Bing, a Westville resident, brought the matter of vandalism on the Umgeni interchange to City Watch’s attention last month. He said he noticed the poles being taken down eight months ago, but did not realise the extent until he visited the area again in October.
Sanral’s eastern region project manager, Bruno Cullen, said at the time it was aware of the problem and that a dedicated lighting repair and maintenance contract would start during the course of 2017. “Under this contract we will look at alternative lighting that cannot be easily vandalised,” Cullen said.
Head of communication for eThekwini Municipality Tozi Mthethwa said the city was not aware of the matter.
“The relevant unit has been tasked to attend to the matter. The city receives numerous complaints from the public about street lights not working owing to cable theft. In order to combat this, the city continuously conducts multi-disciplinary law- enforcement operations to remove illegal electricity connections.
“Incidents of cable theft must also be reported to the SAPS,” she said.