Suburban
Moved by the dangers posed by the non-functioning traffic lights at the intersection of Crowhill Road and Domboshava Road, Borrowdale residents have through the Borrowdale Ratepayers and Residents Association taken steps to help repair the robots.
Peter Tanyanyiwa Suburban Reporter
Besides being a potential accident hazard, the broken down traffic lights are also a concern for the residents because of the heavy congestion and delays motorists experience while negotiating their way through.
The BRRA has also hinted on a possible partnership with the City of Harare for the management of refuse collection trucks servicing Ward 18.
In an interview with Suburban this week, the BRRA chairperson Mr Robert Mutyasira said they had to take the lead on the traffic lights repairs as the intersection has become a nightmare.
“We are currently spearheading a traffic lights project where Crowhill and Domboshava Roads meet, the absence of which has been the cause of delayed traffic flow and congestion at this intersection. We hope the residents will keep on supporting us as we try to push for development as an association,” he said.
The BRRA has said the donations required will be both in cash and in kind for the pre-commissioning touch ups needed. The residents’ move follow the announcement by Government to reduce congestion on roads in urban areas and their efforts will complement the work by the State and City of Harare.
Last month, Government set up an ad hoc Inter-Ministerial Taskforce that was instructed to move swiftly and effectively to reduce congestion in urban areas, with particular emphasis on Harare Metropolitan where the problems were easily the most severe.
Within a week the taskforce recommended a swathe of solutions and ameliorations that could be implemented very quickly and these were accepted by Cabinet.
Government is providing financing for the initiative and will also monitor and supervise the collection and use of revenues by local authorities to ensure that rates and other charges are collected and that the money is spent properly.
Minister Mutsvangwa
Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Monica Mutsvangwa recently told journalists at a post-Cabinet media briefing that initial planning for the upgrade of the Mbudzi roundabout had been completed with specifications now being drawn up so materials can be ordered and work started.
Three other roundabouts besides Mbudzi were pinpointed for initial upgrade or repair, those at the intersection of High Glen and Gleneagles roads plus the Kuwadzana and Warren Park D roundabouts along Samora Machel Avenue West.
Minister Mutsvangwa said contracts had already been awarded and the delivery of material would be completed by June 15. She said materials were being procured to fix the traffic lights at critical junctions. The Minister also announced that Harare will now be getting an enhanced traffic control system that continually changes the duration of signals at traffic lights to ensure the best traffic flows. The fixed time schedules now in place are simply a compromise based on averages, not on actual traffic flows which vary enormously between morning and evening rush hours.
Mr Mutyasira also said that soon the BRRA shall be announcing a possible partnership with the City of Harare for the management of refuse collection trucks once the Memorandum of Understanding has been signed.
“This initiative will also require funding from residents. The Borrowdale District Office known as ‘the round house’ and an icon of our suburb needs some structural repairs and we all know our local authority is incapacitated to take care of those so we cannot watch the roof collapse when we can do something about it,” he said.
“Restoration of tools such as brush cutters and the resources for the grass cutting and clearing of overgrown bushes in most parts of Borrowdale and surrounding areas have been made possible by the contributions of other residents who subscribe to the BBRA annually and also donate in cash and in kind,” said Mr Mutyasira.
He went on to encourage residents to also take time to go through certain petitions being lodged by the BRRA and the Harare Wetlands Trust that endanger their community and also add their voice as it will affect them.
“Some petitions objecting to certain developments which pose danger to our environment are and will be in circulation and we urge residents not to be complacent but make the effort to understand the rationale behind such moves by your residents’ association in conjunction with other pressure groups such as the Harare Wetlands Trust,” added Mr Mutyasira.
