New City of Joburg Mayor Dada Morero has announced that he plans to reconsider transforming the Lillian Ngoyi Street, known as Bree Street, into a park at the gas explosion site.
The road sustained significant damage from a methane gas explosion on July 19, 2023, which also caused substantial damage to nearby streets.
The repair project has experienced delays, with Durapi Consulting awarded the tender, and Step Up Engineering as the contractor.
The rehabilitation of the road, divided into two phases, started in January 2024, with the first phase anticipated to conclude by December 2024.
The Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA), a City of Joburg entity, has since issued a formal notice of intent to terminate the contract of the contractor, with repairs being halted.
Morero, outlining his city plans, announced he wants to shift the road reconstruction project to creating a recreational facility for local residents.
He said that instead of continuing with the road reconstruction, they should focus on creating safer spaces for residents.
“You would know that the bulk of that area where the explosion happened is actually residential. But, I think we will come back with a proper announcement soon, whether we continue to rebuild the roads or perhaps we should look at building a park so that children have activities there,” he told the public broadcaster.
He said that it’s part of the city’s rejuvenation and rethinking programme.
“If you are rejuvenating and rethinking the City, I don’t think it will be rethinking the City if we continue to rebuild the road.”
Asked on how he plans to develop the recreational facility on the four-way lane road, he said: “Once we make a pronouncement, we will need experts to come in, share and understand and break this idea whether it is a workable idea or not.”
Morero said they will test the idea to determine if they can offer a better solution for Joburg residents than simply rebuilding the road.
IOL News took to the streets to engage with taxi drivers’ on the idea, but they expressed mixed reactions.
Sphamandla Nzuza, a taxi driver from Cosmo City who travels to Joburg daily, was concerned the idea would lead to increased road congestion.
“It won’t work because there’s already significant confusion and congestion in the City due to the road closure. Turning the road into a park will make things even worse.”
Another taxi driver lamented that the road closure would not only impact them but also affect street vendors who sell there.
“It’s going to be a huge mess. It’s a terrible idea because that road was very busy, and now its closure is causing significant traffic congestion and confusion for commuters,” Albert Mulaudzi said.
Early this year, IOL News reported that the City of Joburg (CoJ) announced that it has invested R196 million in professional fees and construction costs, covering roadworks, stormwater, and services infrastructure, electrical, mechanical, and structural works.
The rehabilitation project has since been halted.
IOL Politics