{"id":98600,"date":"2025-06-24T10:27:31","date_gmt":"2025-06-24T08:27:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/?p=98600"},"modified":"2025-06-24T10:27:31","modified_gmt":"2025-06-24T08:27:31","slug":"jra-warns-residents-against-illegal-pothole-repairs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/jra-warns-residents-against-illegal-pothole-repairs\/","title":{"rendered":"JRA warns residents against illegal pothole repairs"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Sameera Casmod | <a href=\"mailto:sameerac@radioislam.co.za\">sameerac@radioislam.co.za<\/a><br \/>\n24 June 2025 | 10:30 CAT<br \/>\n3-minute read<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_98601\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-98601\" data-attachment-id=\"98601\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/jra-warns-residents-against-illegal-pothole-repairs\/potholes-road-jpg1\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/potholes-road.jpg1_.jpg?fit=602%2C602&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"602,602\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;Rochelle Els&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1622549052&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"potholes-road.jpg1\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;Image: Newcastillian News&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/potholes-road.jpg1_.jpg?fit=300%2C300&amp;ssl=1\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/potholes-road.jpg1_.jpg?fit=602%2C602&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-98601\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/potholes-road.jpg1_.jpg?resize=300%2C300&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-98601\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Image: Newcastillian News<\/p><\/div>\n<p>In a nutshell:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA) has cautioned residents against fixing potholes themselves, warning that improper materials like sand and bricks can increase road hazards and damage vehicles.<\/li>\n<li>The JRA acknowledges public frustration over delays in pothole repairs, citing heavy rains, budget shortages, and the end of the financial year as reasons for slower response times.<\/li>\n<li>From July 1, the start of the new financial year, contractors will return to the roads, enabling the JRA to expedite both major resurfacing and minor pothole repairs across Johannesburg.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>A puncture. Bent rims. A stressed suspension system. Reason? Potholes.<\/p>\n<p>Numerous communities have taken it upon themselves to repair damaged roads by filling them with sand, bricks, or even tar. Now, the Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA) has issued a severe warning to residents about the quality of the materials, which are often not up to standard and can pose a serious risk to motorists.<\/p>\n<p>In an <a href=\"https:\/\/on.soundcloud.com\/QVkop4szLLn4XAFBqY\">interview<\/a> on Radio Islam International, the Head of Department for Regional Operations at the JRA, Khayalethu Gqibitole, said that while the JRA is constantly working to remedy the problem, work is often delayed due to the overwhelming number of potholes on Johannesburg roads.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAt times, we have heavy rains and the work that\u00a0we are faced with is so much that even the timelines we are given, at times we have to\u00a0delay on them, and in most cases we communicate with communities\u00a0to say &#8211; we&#8217;ve got this challenge and there will be delays- but eventually we end up fixing\u00a0all the potholes,\u201d Gqibitole said.<\/p>\n<p>The JRA is\u00a0a municipal entity owned by the City of Johannesburg and its core function is to provide and maintain the city&#8217;s road infrastructure. It is managed by a managing director and a board of directors who report to the City Manager.<\/p>\n<p>The JRA has partnered with companies to assist in the repairs, including Jozi My Jozi and Discovery Pothole Patrol. These collaborations have been facilitated through the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) agreement, Gqibitole explained.<\/p>\n<p>Numerous communities have applied to the JRA to collaborate on solving the problem. However, there are currently no policies in place to regulate such arrangements.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCurrently, we&#8217;re finalising our own policy because remember these donations and everyone that wants\u00a0to do this are not only doing it for the good cause of the city. Some of the initiatives have\u00a0potential of damaging the reputation of the city. So we have to ensure that a process of\u00a0vetting before we allow any cooperation with any community is done. A process of vetting needs to\u00a0be done so that we can safeguard the reputation of the of the city,\u201d Gqibitole said.<\/p>\n<p>The JRA, while acknowledging motorists\u2019 frustration at the extensive deterioration of the roads, emphasises that any work on road infrastructure must adhere to established rules, meet specific standards, and be done by registered professionals.<\/p>\n<p>The JRA has clarified that while communities often express a willingness to assist with pothole repairs, such work must be overseen by engineers appointed by the JRA to ensure safety and technical standards. Fixing potholes is considered a temporary, \u201cmake-safe\u201d measure and not a long-term solution. A 2017 visual assessment of the city\u2019s roads found that most require major interventions such as rehabilitation, resurfacing, or complete reconstruction\u2014work that demands a significantly larger budget than what is currently available.<\/p>\n<p>Due to funding constraints, the city has been forced to prioritise low-cost repairs like pothole patching, which only addresses surface-level safety and not the deeper structural issues of the roads. This is why potholes often reappear shortly after being fixed. The JRA emphasised that these patching efforts are a short-term safety measure while the agency continues to seek the substantial funding required for proper, lasting road repairs.<\/p>\n<p>The JRA has acknowledged public frustration over delays in pothole repairs and explained that limited capacity often hampers their ability to respond quickly. When internal resources are stretched, the JRA typically outsources some of its work to external contractors. However, with the current financial year ending, budget constraints have forced a halt on new payments and requests, further contributing to the slow response times.<\/p>\n<p>The agency assured residents that from the start of the new financial year on 1 July, contractors will return to the roads, helping to fast-track outstanding maintenance. These contractors will focus on both resurfacing projects and minor repairs, such as pothole patching. This additional capacity is expected to significantly improve response times and enable the JRA to address road maintenance more efficiently.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Listen <\/strong>to the <a href=\"https:\/\/on.soundcloud.com\/QVkop4szLLn4XAFBqY\">full interview<\/a> on Sabaahul Muslim with Moulana Sulaimaan Ravat.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sameera Casmod | sameerac@radioislam.co.za 24 June 2025 | 10:30 CAT 3-minute read In a nutshell: The Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA) has cautioned residents against fixing potholes themselves, warning that improper materials like sand and bricks can increase road hazards and damage vehicles. The JRA acknowledges public frustration over delays in pothole repairs, citing heavy rains, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":98601,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[28,4995],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-98600","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latest-news","category-south-africa"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/potholes-road.jpg1_.jpg?fit=602%2C602&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pc0QIf-pEk","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-15 20:14:15","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98600","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/30"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=98600"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98600\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/98601"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=98600"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=98600"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=98600"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}