Nine people were arrested during a protest in Edenburg, in the southern Free State on Friday, police said.
Captain Rulene Kuhn said a group tried to block the R717, the turn-off road into town from the N1 highway at 8am on Friday.
Police used teargas to disperse the crowd. Five women and four men were arrested for taking part in an illegal gathering.
Township residents told local radio station OFM they were struggling with service delivery problems.
They had delivered several memorandums to the municipality highlighting their grievances, but had not had any response.
Kuhn said the situation in the town had been quiet since 1pm on Friday. - Sapa