Construction begins on Beukes Road

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12-05-2022
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Bedfordview and Edenvale News
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Amanda Davision says construction on Beukes Rd has started and expected to be done after a month.

According to Ward 15 Clr Amanda Davison, construction on Beukes Road began on April 28.

In the last two years, Beukes Road has taken hit after hit due to damage to the old drainage system.

In previous interviews with the Express, Davison stated that the stormwater system had a design flaw in the form of a T-junction that forced the water up through the manhole instead of directing it away from the catchment.

This resulted in the disaster of the road flooding in January 2021.

“As it flushed debris down towards Old Pretoria Road, this continued to break up the road surface.”

Following extensive consultation with the municipality, a new pipeline was installed from Stephanus Road, running diagonally to Ceylon Road, where it joined the existing stormwater system on that road in February 2021.

However, only three metres away on Beukes Road, things seemed to get worse. In January 2022, the road collapsed due to heavy rain.

The problem, according to Davison, was a hole on Beukes Road caused by a faulty manhole design.

“However, they did begin working, rebuilding the small wall around the drain. They’re going to reinforce the wall to prevent it from happening again, as well as resurface the entire road properly.”

She went on to say that the construction company will not only slap a layer of tar on the road but will scrape everything off and do a full-on preparation of the base, including various levels and layers.

Davison said due to the struggle with funds in Ekurhuleni and how the new administration took over a bankrupt system, trying to find funds as well as finding the correct contractors for the correct amount of money put a delay on the entire road-repair process.

“In the end, the municipality gave it back to the Kempton Park Roads and Stormwater Department, who is now working on the wall, and we have a contractor who will do the entire road,” Davison explained.

The councillor said the contractor gave her an estimated time of two to four weeks for the road construction to be completed, but she does not want to raise the community’s hopes. She has extended the time frame to a month until Beukes Road is restored.

Davison is hoping that the solution to the problems at “Beukes Gat” will be permanent, as she does not want to return to the location to find another car in a manhole.

“If the Beukes Road collapses again, I will personally take on the name ‘Amanda se Gat’.”

Davison also said she hopes to speak with the EMPD to assist in managing the taxis that drive over the mangled road even after it has been blocked, as they only add to the destruction.