The Belgrave Bridge closure has sparked an interesting debate, primarily because some residents are fighting to keep the bridge closed, while others want it reopened – immediately!
In the Sandton Chronicle article, Please Re-open, Week ending 11 November, it was explained that a Sandton resident, Estelle Hoffman, believes that the bridge should be reopened by the Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA). It has also been previously reported in numerous articles, that the closure has led to severe traffic congestion in the Bryanston area.
However, there are two sides to the story and other residents want the bridge to remain closed. One such resident is Gil Frith-Brothers who lives in Riverclub. She said, “I have lived in Riverclub for some 15 years now, and I was utterly delighted when they closed the bridge.
“Weekly I see letters and articles in the Sandton Chronicle, from people claiming to be highly inconvenienced because their rat-run through Riverclub has been stopped. The traffic level in the mornings and evenings is very bad.”
She went on to explain that these vehicles travel through the suburbs of Riverclub at a significantly dangerous speed. “There is a total disregard for animals, people and road signs. Everyone is hell-bent on reaching their destination.
“There are nannies walking toddlers in prams and, in the evenings, very often children on bikes,” she said.
Another Riverclub resident, Jacky Vernon added, “It’s not a simple, keep-bridge-open-or-closed question. I would be in favour of keeping it closed if there was a way of actually leaving the suburb towards Bryanston during rush hour. We were given permission for a pointsman on Ballyclare Drive, but this has not materialised. I am, therefore, in favour of opening it until the issue of us residents leaving our area can be established.
She did, however, stress that having the bridge closed has had its perks as there are no longer cars flying around the suburb. “The entire area needs an assessment in terms of the traffic flowing through our area,” said Vernon.
In her opinion, the route through the winding roads of Bryanston should not be considered a major traffic route.
Ward 103 councillor, Vincent Earp visited the bridge with the Sandton Chronicle on 11 November and, as a result of heavy rainfall, water was streaming over the bridge rapidly. Earp stressed that smaller cars would not be able to safely cross the bridge after heavy rainfall. “Booms should be placed at the entrance of the bridge and a security company should come and close them when there’s rain,” Earp offered as a solution.
