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Worst potholes in SA: eThekwini Municipality says it fixes '250 every week'

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<b>WORST POTHOLES:</b> Which major SA city do you think has the worst potholes? Our readers rate the following cities - 1 Johannesburg, 2 East London, 3 Durban. <i>Image: iStock</i>
<b>WORST POTHOLES:</b> Which major SA city do you think has the worst potholes? Our readers rate the following cities - 1 Johannesburg, 2 East London, 3 Durban. <i>Image: iStock</i>

Durban - Earlier in November, Wheels24 asked our readers to vote for the city which they believe contains the worst potholes  in South Africa.

Our homepage poll garnered more than 18 000 votes.

These holes are commonplace throughout SA and are often the cause of hefty repair bills. Not only can hitting one seriously damage your vehicle but they can lead to deadly crashes.

Sadly, as is the case with most service-delivery issues, local governments are often slow in remedying the situation. 

READ: Which city has the worst potholes in SA? More than 18 000 respond

Vote results

Wheels24 asked 'which major SA city has the worst potholes?': 

1 Johannesburg - 8518 votes
2 East London - 4132
3 Durban - 1784
4 Bloemfontein - 1735
5 Pretoria - 1338
6 Cape Town - 591

Durban municipality responds

Following our article, Wheels24 received a release issued by the eThekwini Municipality  in Durban. According to the municipality, it "repairs approximately 250 potholes every week". In our poll, Durban ranked as the third worst city for potholes.

The full release below: 

"In reference to the article titled ‘Which city has the worst potholes in SA?’ the City wishes to respond as follows:

"All eThekwini roads are maintained on a continuous basis. Similar to our fellow cities, eThekwini Municipality repairs approximately 250 potholes every week. It has also been noticed recently that the number of reported potholes has decreased to 130 a week. This signifies the improvements that have been made in ensuring that are roads are well maintained at all times.

"Following a number of severe rainstorms in the area, measures have been put in place to improve on the turnaround time for the repair of potholes.  A Works Management System together with Associated Inspection Protocol has also been implemented.

"With that being said, eThekwini Municipality encourages residents and motorists to continue reporting potholes on the municipal road network to a 24 hour toll-free call centre on 0801 313 013 or alternately send an email to Eservices@durban.gov.za. All calls received are referenced. 

"Every effort is made to respond to complaints related to potholes and trenches in the road within 24hours to enable the situation to be assessed and to ensure that the road is made safe where necessary. Potholes on the provincial road network may be reported to the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Transport on 031 700 2222.”


Do you agree with the eThekwini Municipality? Do you have any experiences with potholes in your area? Email us or get in touch via Facebook  and Twitter.




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