Johannesburg Roads Agency Now in Charge of City’s Traffic Light Repairs, Residents Have No Faith
- The Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA) will now be in charge of repairing traffic lights in the city
- The Gauteng Provincial Department of Roads and Transport (GPDRT) was previously in charge of it
- South Africans have little faith that the JRA will be able to manage to deal with the extra workload
Source: Getty Images
Briefly News journalist Byron Pillay has spent a decade reporting on the South African political landscape, crime and social issues. He spent 10 years working for a community newspaper before transitioning to online
GAUTENG – The Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA) will now be in charge of repairing traffic lights in the city, but residents aren’t convinced that it’s the best idea.
The Gauteng Provincial Department of Roads and Transport (GPDRT) has been in charge of traffic lights along the main routes since 2022.
The responsibility was that of the JRA until 2022 when a dispute with the South African Revenue Service (SARS) left them unable to continue doing so. The GPDRT then took over.
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JRA to maintain 275 more traffic lights
With the responsibility returning to the JRA, the entity now will have 275 more sets of traffic lights on the main routes in addition to the 2 023 already under its jurisdiction.
It will now also be responsible for traffic lights along Winnie Mandela Drive, Beyers Naude Drive, Ontdekkers Road, Chris Hani Road, Hendrik Potgieter Road and the Soweto Highway.
JRA CEO Zweli Nyathi said that consolidating all traffic lights in Johannesburg under the entity would streamline repairs and maintenance.
“It is essential to minimise traffic disruptions and inconveniences to road users, thereby promoting smoother mobility throughout the city,” Nyathi said.
The issue remains a major problem for the city. In January 2025, it was revealed that thousands of traffic signals weren’t operating properly either through power cuts, budget issues, or vandalism.
Source: Getty Images
Traffic light repair is by no means a cheap task, as many found of over the years. On 4 February 2022, the City of Johannesburg reported that it cost over R30 million to fix 120 traffic lights.
Social media users unhappy with JRA taking over
The news didn’t sit well with citizens who complained that JRA couldn’t fix the roads, let alone the traffic lights.
Judy King vented:
“Yesterday it took me 25 mins to travel less than one kilometre. Now if that's happening every single day of the week to thousands of motorists, just how many hours are being wasted? And given the state of the country, we simply cannot afford for this to go on. It's utterly appalling.
Donay Booysen stated:
“JRA can’t even fix the roads, how are they going to fix the traffic lights?
Thokozani Thumbela Mpangazitha noted:
“Mxm, all robots are not working anymore.”
Anton Geldenhuys said:
“They can't even fix themselves.”
Siphiwe Ngwenya added:
“That's not their mandate. They must fix potholes and stop fixing traffic lights.”
Paul Rathbone appealed:
“Don't dare let them take over. Look at Lylian Ngoi Street where R197 million was spent to fill a hole. Look at the R263 million water tanker corruption and asphalt plant failures. Kunene must stay in his Sushi-eating lane.”
Mike Brett stated:
“They can't even fix potholes.”
Man attempts to steal traffic light
On 3 January 2024, footage surfaced on social media of a man trying to steal a traffic light.
Briefly News noted that the footage detailed the audacious act of theft and quickly gained attention.
The incident also raised questions about public safety and the brazenness of criminal activity.
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Source: Briefly News
