The City of Tshwane has added two jetpatchers to the road maintenance fleet and certified 28 newly trained officials as the fight against potholes intensifies before the rainy season.
Tshwane mayor Nasiphi Moya was joined by deputy mayor and finance MMC Eugene Modise and roads and transport MMC Tlangi Mogale at the handover of the machines at the Belle Ombre depot in Pretoria on Tuesday.
According to Mogale, the jetpatcher machines valued at R7.6m will help the city maintain road infrastructure and reduce the backlog.
“The jetpatchers allow us to clean, fill and fix potholes in one continuous process. It is also faster and more cost-effective than the old methods,” she said. “It uses compressed air and stone chips coated in binding emulsion, with which each jetpatcher can repair between 3km and 5km of road surface per day.”
Mogale said the city has:
- fixed more than 200km of roads through reactive maintenance in the past year;
- completed 78km of proactive resurfacing; and
- repaired 14,072 of the 18,067 potholes reported, resulting in a 78% completion rate.
“This investment increases our ability to respond quickly and make a meaningful dent in the remaining backlog.”
Mogale added that R43m was spent on road repairs in the current financial year and roads with severe potholes were prioritised.
TimesLIVE
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