Hendrik Potgieter Road a clogged lifeline
Congestion on Hendrik Potgieter affects commuters as well as residents
If Roodepoort is the heart of the West Rand, then Hendrik Potgieter Road is its main artery.
Also known as the M47 arterial, the road acts as the sole thoroughfare for motorists making their way from the newly-developed residential surrounding areas, right through to the Johannesburg CBD, and there is no alternative. A regular commute from Cradlestone Mall to 14th Avenue should take roughly half an hour. Enter parents taking children to school and dozens of taxis at 7am on a weekday morning, and travel time increases by a whole hour, if not more.
“Due to the increase of populous, as well as property development in the area, Hendrik Potgieter Road is under tremendous strain,” said JMPD spokesperson Edna Mamonyane. “The infrastructure there is simply not strong enough to handle the continual influx of motorists, taxis and trucks that take to the road on a daily basis.”
ER24 spokesperson Christo Deventer explained the road is a major headache for emergency vehicles. “The emergency lanes are pretty much non-existent. We are always forced to move through the middle of traffic, which can be painstakingly slow.” Because of this, emergency vehicles often don’t reach their destination on time, with catastrophic results.
It’s not only those who get caught in the congestion that suffer. Liezel Daniell resides in Althea Street, off Jim Fouché Road, which is one of the many back roads taken by motorists to avoid traffic on Hendrik Potgieter Road.
“Last week Wednesday evening as I got home, I opened my gate to pull into our yard, when my dog excitedly rushed to greet me,” said Daniell. “A speeding vehicle, which didn’t belong in our street, but didn’t want to be stuck on Hendrik Potgieter Road, ran over our beloved dog of nine years and killed him right in front of us.”
The Daniell family is distraught. “Whilst standing next to our dying dog, four cars came speeding down the road,” lamented Daniell. “They saw us standing next to our dog, me in tears. They were too heartless to slow down. Three of these motorists still had the audacity to swear at me when I motioned for them to slow down.”
Mamonyane, who frequently uses the road to get to work from Hekpoort, proposed the following solution to help alleviate congestion on busy Hendrik Potgieter. “Car-pool. Speak to colleagues who live in your area and organise a lift club. By not travelling alone in one vehicle, we can reduce every three or four cars to one.”
