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An R84m road upgrade on the busy Fleet Street in East London has been put on hold following alleged clashes between Buffalo City Metro and private contractor Siyahlobisa Projects.
Buffalo City DA leader Lance Weyer says they've noted that no work had been done on the road for the past few months.
Executive mayor Zukiwa Ncitha officially launched the project last October with work starting soon after.
The project is meant to upgrade existing structures, including sidewalks, storm-water and sewerage systems and relaying curbs.
Weyer lists the frustrations brought about by the halting of the project
"The road is being dug so there's huge dust (and) mess. On dry days the dust blows around. On days when it rains the soil from the road is clogging the drains all the way down to the ocean.
Trucks that travel along the R-72, being a major arterial road, are forced to detour down a small side street which is damaging the street and causing inconvenience to the public. People are driving on the closed road, causing damage to the work that has already been done," he said.
Buffalo City spokesperson, Keith Ngesi, confirms that the project has been halted.
"Siyahlobisa Projects suspeded all work on 16 September, 2014. And, Buffalo City Metro is dealing with the matter as per the contractual obligations between Buffalo City and Siyalhobisa. But, we can say that the contractor's site management and safety personnel are still on site," he said.
