Pothole pandemic hits Upper Highway

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21-05-2025
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Highway Mail
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The issue of potholes in the city is a pressing concern, especially with the constant rains exacerbating the problem. Ward 10 councillor Caelee Laing is urging residents to take an active role in reporting potholes to the municipality and escalating the issue if it's not addressed.

WITH the constant issue of potholes throughout the city worsening because of constant rains, Ward 10 councillor Caelee Laing has urged residents to report these to the municipality and request escalation from their respective councillors should these not be attended to.

Laing was speaking after a Gillitts resident complained about the state of the roads in the Upper Highway.

The resident, who has resided in the Upper Highway for 15 years, said there needs to be a permanent solution to the pothole issues which occasionally get ‘window-dressing’ repairs.

“Every time it rains, the supposedly repaired potholes open up and even bigger holes remain – for another few years till the next tenderpreneur is hired to do yet another patch job, and so on and so forth,” said the resident.

She pointed out that some of the worst are Everton Road and Acutts Drive.

“Only about two years ago they tarred the treacherous section of Acutts Drive through the gorge, to the beginning of the lower/service entrance to Le Domaine.”

She said Everton Road is hazardous because a patch gets repaired, or one hole is filled, another left open, then another filled.

“So one is continually driving like dodgem cars to avoid your vehicle / tyres being wrecked or driving into oncoming traffic, which is also trying to avoid the potholes and swerving across the middle line.”

She described Acutts Drive from the start of Clifton Hills and Le Domaine, past 101 Acutts and merging with Inanda Road, as a nightmare.

“A grader removed a section of the tarred potholed road and nothing has been done since then. The result is huge holes in the now gravel / sand road, with the grader standing idle on the side of the road. This has been the situation for at least three months. And the tarred section has ever-increasing potholes all over, making driving there extremely dangerous for both sides of the road.”

Laing said the state of the roads throughout eThekwini continue to deteriorate.

“Unfortunately it is not an area-specific or region-specific problem. It is a constant issue which I am constantly pushing to have addressed throughout ward 10 from my side.”

Regarding Everton Road she said, “That issue specifically has been driven by both myself and my predecessor, Cllr Tex Collins, to have the road rehabilitated due to the deterioration of this busy road over the years.”

Over recent months, Laing said contractors have been doing partial rehabilitation in the Outer West region, working on Everton Road and others with particularly hazardous potholes and road damage.

She said Everton Road’s rehabilitation has been included in the upcoming financial year’s draft budget after many years of requests.

“Acutts Drive falls partially under the municipality and partially under eThekwini; the section currently being done near Le Domaine is being done by the provincial Department of Transport.”