Concrete spillage concerns resident

Sandton resident, Angus Robinson, believes that ready-mix concrete is destroying the roads in Sandton.

Robinson said, “I have a serious problem [with] how the construction industry and especially the Readymix concrete companies [cement mixer vehicles] are regularly and consistently dropping wet concrete as well as aggregate [small grey stones] on the roads of Sandton.”

According to Robinson, this is a serious issue as she believes it destroys the road’s surface. “It leaves hard or rough concrete patches on the roads which damages [vehicle’s] tyres.

“It results in loose stones being left on the road surface waiting to be flicked up onto cars and their windscreens. Loose aggregate also becomes incredibly dangerous on the roads when trying to brake or [take a] corner, especially in the wet.”

The concerned resident further highlighted that road maintenance becomes an issue when new road markings are required in areas where the concrete has been dropped onto the road.

In response to her comments, general manager of the Southern African Readymix Association (Sarma), Johan van Wyk said, “Sarma supports any initiative to clean the spillages of Readymix concrete in Sandton and elsewhere.”

Van Wyk added that the association is a voluntary membership association for reputable Readymix concrete producers. “We act as a forum for members and [diseminate] information to the industry. Unfortunately, we cannot speak for non-members and their practices. [The association] has been involved with the cleaning of spillages.”

He stressed that all spillages that have been reported to their offices have been cleaned up. Van Wyk said the association also has several meetings with the companies that supply concrete in the area to make sure that spillages are cleaned up on a regular basis.

He concluded, “Having said all of this, Sarma encourages the public to assist in reporting spillages, with proof of the companies involved. Our members are committed to cleaning up the spillages.”

Johannesburg Roads Agency spokesperson, Bertha Peters-Scheepers said, “Thank you to the resident for alerting us to this situation. Ready-mix concrete spillage onto the road surface is a concern for the agency as, not only does it damage the road surface, but could cause damage to vehicles’ tyres and, depending on the severity of the spill, could even cause accidents.”

Peters-Scheepers stated that the road agency has two wayleave applicants within Sandton who use Readymix concrete and said that the agency’s depot would send an inspector on 3 August to monitor the situation and ensure that any and all spillage is cleared.

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