THE Gweru City Council has started patching potholes in the city, but this is only a temporary fix as the local authority says it cannot afford a permanent solution, Southern Eye has established.
Stephen Chadenga OWN CORRESPONDENT
Yesterday, this paper witnessed council workers offloading gravel from trucks, which they were using to cover huge potholes that were caused by the heavy rains experienced for the most part of December 2014.
Residents have been complaining about potholes, which have gone unattended in most suburban areas and they have been expanding at a frightening rate due to heavy rains.
In January last year, then city director of engineering services, Jones Nanthambwe, revealed in a report on the status of water supply and road maintenance that the local authority was only able to maintain a third of its surfaced road network due to lack of capital.
Nanthambwe said the Zimbabwe National Roads Administration’s assistance in road maintenance had declined significantly.
“Road maintenance has been a major problem due to the fact that it is capital intensive,” he said.
In its 2015 budget, the Gweru municipality revealed that it intended to purchase capital equipment to enhance service delivery.
- Chamisa under fire over US$120K donation
- Mavhunga puts DeMbare into Chibuku quarterfinals
- Pension funds bet on Cabora Bassa oilfields
- Councils defy govt fire tender directive
Keep Reading
The city needs to purchase a mobile asphalt plant to be used in the preparation of cold or hot mix for pothole patching.
Gweru mayor Hamutendi Kombayi acknowledged the city was using gravel to cover potholes as a “temporary stopgap measure”.
“Despite the challenges we face as a city, we have to do something to make sure that the potholes on our roads are covered as a temporary measure,” he said.
Residents interviewed, however, maintained that the city fathers should come up with lasting solutions to pothole problems.
