Going to pot on a road to nowhere: Gatvol in the Free State

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04-08-2023
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News 24
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While the budget of the provincial Department of Community Safety, Roads and Transport for the new financial year was increased to R1.8 billion, the average annual budget of R1.3 billion was not enough to solve the province’s road crisis.

At least R24 billion is needed just to get the roads in a reasonably driveable condition, admits Vincent Ntaka, director of building and maintenance in the department.

70% of the province’s roads are in a terrible state.

In the heart of the eastern Free State, halfway between tourist town Clarens and Fouriesburg, motorists are in for a shock: a pothole that has swallowed nearly half the road. 

The pothole, which was presumably caused by many seasons of heavy rains and absolutely no maintenance, has been there for about two years, Netwerk24 reports. 

Someone spray-painted “ANC” on the remaining road surface with an arrow pointing to the massive hole. 

While the budget of the provincial Department of Community Safety, Roads and Transport for the new financial year was increased to R1.8 billion, the average annual budget of R1.3 billion was not enough to solve the province’s road crisis. 

At least R24 billion is needed just to get the roads in a reasonably driveable condition, admits Vincent Ntaka, director of building and maintenance in the department. 

He told Netwerk24 that up to 70% of the province’s roads were in a terrible state. 

The Free State is located centrally in South Africa and is crossed by vehicles carrying passengers and goods from most provinces and neighbouring countries, contributing to the overall economy of the country. However, a decade of alleged looting through state capture and cadre deployment in the era of former premier Ace Magashule has reportedly crippled this province. 

When Netwerk24 decided in July to undertake an investigation for Truth First into the cause of the condition of Free State roads, Charles Smith, the publication's central news editor, gave this advice: "You're going to need a 4x4." 

He was absolutely right. Over two weeks, Netwerk24's reporters travelled about 2 000 km on mainly provincial roads to reach the same conclusion: you can truly only navigate these roads in a 4x4.

Joburg-Villiers-Frankfort-Tweeling-Reitz-Bethlehem

The N3 highway to Villiers is in good condition, but the roads in the town itself are in extremely poor condition. It's on the R26 between Frankfort and Tweeling that reporters encountered the first roadworks of the journey.

This project has been dragging on for three years after the initial contractors performed poorly - according to the department - packed up their belongings and left.

For about 10km, our Toyota Hilux had to navigate the dirt road on the shoulder of the highway while the project, set to be completed in August, is in its final phase. 

After many delays, the road between Frankfort and Tweeling is nearly finished.

Bethlehem-Lindley-Steynsrus-Kroonstad-Parys 

The deterioration in Bethlehem is glaring. The municipal road De Leeuwstraat, which passes by the Hoogland Mediclinic, is falling apart. 

The condition of the N5 main road that runs through this town – a major artery for traffic from various provinces, and the responsibility of the South African National Roads Agency (Sanral) – is reasonable. 

"All the national roads that pass through the Free State are reasonably good, but the provincial roads are extremely poor," says Free State DA leader Roy Jankielsohn. 

"The town roads are extremely poor. Our local governments have basically crumbled. Our provincial government is on the brink of collapse." 

We take the R76 from Bethlehem, passing through Lindley, until we reach Steynsrus. The road has random potholes. 

It's between Steynsrus and Kroonstad where the fun begins. 

This is a road that many people complain about. 

According to an official response to inquiries by the DA to Roads and Transport MEC Maqueen Letsoha-Mathae, the department has paid Sedtrade a total of R282 million for construction work on this road to date. 

A dispute between Sedtrade, the contractor, and the department is delaying the completion of the roadworks. According to Ntaka, the department is trying to settle outside of court. 

Work on the road, which was supposed to be completed in February, has come to a halt. The construction of the road, which began in 2018, was, according to Ntaka and a document provided to Netwerk24, 85% complete when a dispute between the department and the contractor arose at the end of last year. 

This still needs to be resolved, according to Ntaka. 

"They will now have to redo that road," says Jankielsohn. He says that while the department and the contractor are arguing in court, the road is deteriorating. "It's full of potholes again. People have died on that road. Our roads are not just dangerous, they're deadly.” 

According to Jankielsohn, the construction of the road has already seen three contractors. 

"This is due to poor management. Either they employ people who can’t do the work, or they take the money and waste it, or their planning is just poor. I believe it's poor planning." 

Jankielsohn also attributes this to mismanagement and corruption. 

"All of this is part of Ace Magashule's legacy. He initiated much of it, and many of those companies and tenders were from his cadres.” 

Motorists have to drive on the shoulders of the road in both directions. In the middle, the road is almost built, but it's used as a racetrack for heavy trucks. 

When we finally arrive in Kroonstad, a resident, Elise Daneel, looks surprised when we ask at a petrol station for a recommendation of the worst road, rather than the best, out of Kroonstad. 

"The old Koppies road (R82) is impassable. Please don't drive there. There are accidents daily." 

Parys' streets also need urgent attention. 

"The elderly residents don’t dare to walk around the block with their walkers. Children can hardly ride their bicycles in the streets anymore. There are potholes everywhere," says DA councillor Marie La Cock. 

Fellow councillor Saal de Jager says his daughter-in-law and her mother recently had a near miss on the R59 outside Parys on their way to Sasolburg when they had to swerve for potholes at the same time as a truck. 

"This while they were already on the road fixing potholes," says De Jager. 

"Just one pothole on our roads can be life-threatening." 

He and La Cock emphasise that businesses in Parys are suffering due to the poor condition of the roads. 

"People, especially those from Gauteng, see the negative comments on Facebook, then they simply decide not to come here. They avoid it and rather go to other tourist towns, like Dullstroom," says La Cock. 

"The town is further plagued by power and water problems, sewage problems. The people have had enough!" 

Parys-Viljoenskroon-Welkom 

We take the R59 from Parys past the luxury golf estate Vaal de Grace, dodging potholes. Just beyond Vredefort, we turn onto the R59 in the direction of Viljoenskroon. For about 50km, the road is reasonable. However, at the silos, there's a large warning sign indicating that the R59 road between Viljoenskroon and Bothaville is closed. 

We drive on anyway to see what's going on. Severe floods in December 2022 washed away a significant portion of the road. We need to take an alternative route to the R30 towards Odendaalsrus. In the late afternoon, we arrive in Welkom. Here, we meet the road construction contractor, Johan Cronjé. 

Cronjé, CEO of Down Touch Investments, is a tall man in a Pringle shirt, Polo pants, and a chunky ring in the shape of a horseshoe. He mentions the series of contracts they have handled: Bothaville to Wesselsbron, Tweeling to Frankfort, Reitz to Tweeling. And the upcoming projects: Lindley-Petrus Steyn and Senekal-Lindley, which will start soon. 

"The cost amounts to R168 million over 24 months," he says about their latest project. Cronjé boasts that they completed the Bothaville-Viljoenskroon road in two years. 

"The road was in its glory. But I can tell you, there are potholes again." 

He denies the rumours that he's a friend of Magashule, but acknowledges that it's a highly competitive industry. 

"Building roads? It's the dirtiest game out there." 

Welkom-Riebeeckstad-Hennenman-Winburg-Bloemfontein 

From Welkom on the R70 towards Hennenman, we encounter potholes that are more like craters. In places, bricks have been placed in the potholes. We come across a road sign: "Potholes”. Someone spray-painted "ANC" over it. 

From Virginia, we take the R73 to the N1-Winburg direction Bloemfontein. This road is a tragedy. 

Bloemfontein-Dealesville/Bloemfontein-Soutpan 

Early morning, we take the R700 towards Soutpan. We spot him from a distance with his hand-painted sign that reads: "Joseph Pothole Killer. Volunteer. Drive free." 

"Hey! I'm Joseph! The one with the two teeth!" 

The 54-year-old Joseph Potsane says he's been on this road since June 2022. 

"I make about R250 a day. Some days R100. I travel from Soutpan on the Interstate bus. I fill about 30 potholes a day with sand from along the road. Since I've been fixing these potholes, I don't see as many accidents anymore. Before, the cars used to almost kiss each other, kiss each other," he explains how the traffic from both directions almost collides as they navigate the potholes. 

The R64 between Bloemfontein and Dealesville is in very poor condition, but at a glance, one can see that many of the potholes have already been repaired. 

Jannie van der Merwe, the owner of the Pienk Huis in Dealesville, where customers come and go in a steady stream to buy biltong, droëwors, and homemade baked goods while we're there, says they fix the roads themselves as a community effort. 

"Our community does an incredible amount, and when I ask for a donation, we get it. People, especially the farmers, contribute with open hearts." 

They had no other choice but to take matters into their own hands. 

"We all have to drive on this road. Our wives drive it, our children drive it," he tells us. 

The farmers, farmworkers, and residents regularly join forces to fix potholes. 

He explains that filling the potholes with gravel is a short-term solution. All the work gets undone when it rains. They have to use cold tar. 

"It takes the guys, the farmers, away from work – I leave my business for two or three days. It's physically hard work to clean those potholes with brooms. And you have to use picks to chip away at the cracks around the hole." 

It's an endless task. 

"The roads are in such a bad condition. It doesn't matter how much tar you get, you use five tonnes, and you haven't even filled a kilometre's worth of potholes." 

‘It isn’t Magashule’s fault’ 

Vincent Ntaka, director of construction and maintenance at the Free State Department of Public Works and Infrastructure, is very friendly when we set up an appointment and enter his office on a Monday morning in a rundown building in Hamilton, Bloemfontein. Even the blinds here hang haphazardly, and the street outside is covered with potholes. 

"I'd be lying if I said it's Ace Magashule's fault," says Ntaka. 

He argues that the crisis mainly arose due to a "lack of maintenance" over decades. 

"Since the Free State is the central province, our roads deteriorate much faster," says Ntaka, who has held the position for the past 10 years. 

"We spend 24 months on one project, while other roads are deteriorating. We need to shift our focus towards maintenance." 

He tells us about projects, like the road between Reitz and Tweeling, as well as between Tweeling and Frankfort, which are from the 2020-’21 fiscal year. 

"They will be completed by August. Dewetsdorp/Wepener is from the 2021-’22 fiscal year and is still ongoing." 

He explains that when a project isn't completed on time, it affects everyone. 

"We've resolved most of the disputes. Like with Vredefort/Viljoenskroon. There was litigation with Tweeling/Frankfort, but we terminated the initial contract and appointed a new contractor. That's why there's progress now. 

"We also want to hand over more roads to Sanral. The R26, R34, and R74. These are the roads that pose the greatest challenge for us, and if Sanral takes control, it will relieve the pressure on us." 

He says it will cost at least R24 billion over the next 10 years to fix the province's roads. 

Bloemfontein-Ladybrand-Clocolan

In the afternoon, we take the N8 from Bloemfontein to Thaba Nchu. The road is fairly nice, but on the R26, a few kilometres from Ladybrand, it turns into a nightmare. 

From Ladybrand, on the R708 towards Clocolan, the road is in very poor condition. The turnoff towards Clocolan is a shocker. We have to drive along the shoulder of the road to try avoid the potholes. 

Flip Minnaar, 72, from the guest farm Vlakbult, located on the S343 outside Clocolan, says the road here looks nice only because the local farmers scrape it so they can get their grain harvest to the silos. 

"I was born here, the fifth generation on the farm. The roads used to be good. In the 1970s, they were still dirt roads, and the dirt roads were better than what they are today. Clocolan-Marquard, Clocolan-Excelsior – we're surrounded by poor roads." 

From Clocolan, we take the road to Excelsior. It's a very bad road, but in our humble opinion, the Clocolan to Marquard road is the worst so far. There are large sections of the road where there's no longer any tar on the surface. 

We turn back onto the R26 to head towards Ficksburg. Between Clocolan and Ficksburg, we find the Constantia roadside stall. It's one of the gems along the road. About 20km before Ficksburg, the potholes increase. 

Koos de Wet, branch manager of Bestdrive, agricultural company OVK's tyre centre, says there are several tyre centres in town, and there's enough work for everyone. 

"We have to drive about 70 to 100km before we can get onto a decent road again. Ficksburg-Fouriesburg, Clocolan-Marquard, and even Rosendal, Rosendal-Senekal... All the roads out of Ficksburg are poor,” he says. 

"People's vehicles get wrecked here – the rims bend, the tires burst. And the potholes are definitely increasing because the roads are not maintained," adds his colleague, Marco van Staden. "Yes, two years ago, you could still say, 'Let's go grab breakfast in Clarens, honey.' Now that breakfast costs you two rims, two tires, and an alignment..." 

Someone who is there on business, but doesn't want to be named says: "I'm telling you, if you drive straight on these roads today, you're drunk." 

We leave Ficksburg on the R26 towards Fouriesburg, but we turn onto the R70 towards Rosendal. 

For 37km, the road is almost impassable. It's at the top of the list of the worst roads. 

"The condition of the roads has a significant impact on our tourism," says Jankielsohn. "Our farmers are struggling. They have to spend a lot of money on tyres, broken vehicles, and they struggle to get their products to the market. 

"The farmers and their workers have business to attend to in town. Their children need to go to school. They need to use services like clinics in the town. In emergencies, ambulances and police need to be able to respond. 

"It has an impact on the sustainability of our small towns. People don't want to invest here anymore. We're seeing a depopulation of the countryside. Previously, people would retire to the countryside and spend their pensions here. They're not doing that anymore because here, you're basically on an economic island. That's what they (the ANC) have done." 

In Rosendal, there is a ray of light.

Norman Botha, owner of Rosendal Backpackers, is grateful for the group of German tourists who are staying with him for the week. 

"My wife and I fell in love with Rosendal during a trip through the Eastern Free State in 2017. We had to be here again... We just had to." 

Businessman Douglas Mason, originally from Canada, has been here for 10 years and serves on the Rosendal-Mautse town committee. 

"We are a small community, but we work together," he says. 

"The roads were never good, but it's really become a critical problem in the past three or four years. That's how many things work in our country. You don't really know what's going on behind the scenes until things stop working. Small towns in the Free State live or die based on road access." 

About a year ago, the town committee took active steps. 

"We started a public campaign on Twitter, did media interviews, and launched a petition. We took to the streets, of course with the necessary permissions and cooperation from the authorities. There was even a prayer group involving members from local churches." 

This helped lead to the department taking action to repair the roads around Rosendal, with tenders out to upgrade the Ficksburg-Rosendal road, as well as the Rosendal-Senekal road. 

However, there are still no prospects for the residents and users of the R26 to Fouriesburg. 

Susan Janse van Rensburg, from the cherry farm Iona's lovely roadside stall, says they're getting ready for the Iona Cherry Festival scheduled for mid-November, but the road is in a questionable condition. 

"We still need to make a plan for the potholes to make the road more accessible for visitors." 

On the way to Clarens, it's on this road that we encounter the most shocking scene. 

The large sinkhole, which has been left like this for two years. 

Bees van Blerk, a cattle farmer here, tells us that the sand trucks, which extract sand from the Caledon River for construction companies, are wearing down the road. 

Van Blerk was not willing to let them close the road, as that would mean his farm would have to be used as a detour indefinitely. 

One day, he heard that the road was indeed closed. 

"People asked me, is the road closed? And I said, 'No, the road is open. The devil within me just opened up that damn road myself'," he says. 

Van Blerk did indeed reopen the road. 

"They can close it the day they start." 

When we arrive in the beautiful Clarens, it's bustling. Even in the middle of the week. It's located next to SANParks' Golden Gate National Park and provides access back to Bethlehem. 

But when we're back, it's Mason's words from Rosendal that come to mind again. 

"You find sad and happy towns. Sad towns are where the residents have stopped trying. The happy towns are those where the people never throw in the towel."