Vandalism and theft of its traffic signals is not only costing the transport directorate money, but residents too, the City of Cape Town said.
The City said the transport directorate has spent approximately R7.7 million on repairs to electrical and traffic signal infrastructure that has either been vandalised or stolen at intersections across the city in the past month.
The affected intersections are Blaauwberg Road and Jansens Avenue, Blaauwberg and Koeberg roads, Giel Basson Avenue in and around Burgundy Estate, Potsdam Road near Dunoon, the Plattekloof Road/N7 interchange and the Malibongwe Drive/N7 interchange.
Mayoral Committee member for Transport Felicity Purchase said public violence along with the theft and vandalism of infrastructure is costing the City, the provincial government and the SA National Roads Agency (Sanral), including residents.
She said every time a traffic signal is damaged during protests, they have to find money to replace it.
“The money is usually taken from future projects, meaning projects are delayed and communities are robbed.
“Furthermore, the safety of our residents is also compromised and roads become congested, which causes huge delays and frustration for our residents and motorists.
“Each rectification activity takes several days to carry out,” Purchase said.
Delays in fixing traffic infrastructure comes as some of the signals belong to the Western Cape government while Eskom also supplies electricity to some of the intersections.
Residents are urged to report suspicious activity or cases of theft or vandalism of infrastructure.
African News Agency (ANA)