In a move that will surely be welcomed by local ratepayers, Buffalo City Metro is set to spend millions of rands upgrading and fixing rural and urban roads.
The rural roads will be upgraded under a new rural infrastructure intervention package that will be launched “soon”.
The metro said it would also start on a maintenance programme this week that would address the issues of potholes in the suburbs.
This was revealed by the newly appointed city portfolio head for the infrastructure and engineering department, councillor Ncedo Kumbaca. Kumbaca said the package would be unveiled as part of the first 100 days programme of executive mayor Xola Pakati.
Kumbaca was addressing about 80 people who attended the heritage month stakeholders meeting and celebrations hosted by Contralesa on Friday in Buffalo Flats.
He said: “I’m going to be unveiling a strategy. We had a meeting with the department of roads and public works and part of this package will entail fixing the rural roads and providing proper sanitation in the rural areas and I’m expecting traditional leaders to be at the forefront of this initiative.”
He said the metro’s new leadership was serious about rural development and also wanted to curb the “inward migration” as BCM faced challenges from people from rural areas moving to the city and demanding houses, electricity and water, among other basic needs.
Potholes are a hugely contentious issue in the suburbs and Kumbaca said urban residents could also look forward to seeing a change.
He said BCM would appoint “a number of contractors” this week to fix the potholes and upgrade the bad roads around all suburbs in the metro.
“The same will happen in the urban areas, there is a plan for that. We are going to have a maintenance programme for the next three years going to all the suburbs of East London, fixing potholes and rebuilding our roads to make sure that today is better than yesterday.
“That is the commitment we are making and these are not just things we are saying. You are going to see the change where you are staying.
“These interventions will also come with some benefits including job creation,” said Kumbaca.
He urged Contralesa to continue uniting communities, saying development initiatives needed to reach united communities so that residents stopped fighting when new projects needed to be rolled out. — mamelag@dispatch.co.za
Major upgrade for BCM roads on cards
The rural roads will be upgraded under a new rural infrastructure intervention package that will be launched “soon”.
The metro said it would also start on a maintenance programme this week that would address the issues of potholes in the suburbs.
This was revealed by the newly appointed city portfolio head for the infrastructure and engineering department, councillor Ncedo Kumbaca. Kumbaca said the package would be unveiled as part of the first 100 days programme of executive mayor Xola Pakati.
Kumbaca was addressing about 80 people who attended the heritage month stakeholders meeting and celebrations hosted by Contralesa on Friday in Buffalo Flats.
He said: “I’m going to be unveiling a strategy. We had a meeting with the department of roads and public works and part of this package will entail fixing the rural roads and providing proper sanitation in the rural areas and I’m expecting traditional leaders to be at the forefront of this initiative.”
He said the metro’s new leadership was serious about rural development and also wanted to curb the “inward migration” as BCM faced challenges from people from rural areas moving to the city and demanding houses, electricity and water, among other basic needs.
Potholes are a hugely contentious issue in the suburbs and Kumbaca said urban residents could also look forward to seeing a change.
He said BCM would appoint “a number of contractors” this week to fix the potholes and upgrade the bad roads around all suburbs in the metro.
“The same will happen in the urban areas, there is a plan for that. We are going to have a maintenance programme for the next three years going to all the suburbs of East London, fixing potholes and rebuilding our roads to make sure that today is better than yesterday.
“That is the commitment we are making and these are not just things we are saying. You are going to see the change where you are staying.
“These interventions will also come with some benefits including job creation,” said Kumbaca.
He urged Contralesa to continue uniting communities, saying development initiatives needed to reach united communities so that residents stopped fighting when new projects needed to be rolled out. — mamelag@dispatch.co.za
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