Roads in Maydon Wharf a ‘danger to traffic’
SOME motorists have raised concerns over the state of roads in the Maydon Wharf area, especially oil spillages which have been the cause of accidents recently.
According to motorist Derek Rall, who frequently drives in the area, accidents occurred almost every week due to bad road conditions.
He said some pedestrians had slipped and fallen because of the surfaces.
He singled out Fletcher Road and said that this street had many oil patches because it was frequently used by freight trucks travelling to the Durban harbour.
Rall said he had expressed his concerns about the unsafe roads to the metro police and the ethekwini Municipality’s roads department, but had not yet received a response.
“I find it unacceptable that Fletcher Road and most of Maydon Wharf has been allowed to get to this state.
“I have witnessed several accidents and this situation needs to be addressed urgently.
“Fletcher Road is so bad that even when you drive at 40km/h the anti-lock braking system lights come on when you apply brakes,” he said.
Another motorist, Joseph Wicks, said the entire Maydon Wharf area had been neglected.
He said he had counted several issues that needed attention.
“The streets lights and road surfaces need a major revamp. It is surprising that this area, which makes a large contribution to the country’s economy, is in such a deplorable state.”
Wicks said the oil spills could affect marine life because run-off water from the streets flowed into the sea.
“The spills spell danger, not only for marine life, but birds and humans, too.”
He said the oil spills also caused air pollution because oil and petroleum products had many volatile compounds which were emitted as gases from spilt oil.
The city had not responded by the time of going to press.