DURBAN - THE maintenance of provincial roads running through the city is essential and the eThekwini municipality has proposed to partner with the Department of Transport in KwaZulu-Natal (DoT) to ensure that these roads are kept in good condition.
Within the city, there are roads that belong to the municipality and others that belong to the DoT.
Mayor Mxolisi Kaunda revealed recently there is also a possibility the city could take over some of the roads that belong to the department of Transport.
The city said before inheriting such roads, it needed to assess the conditions of those road and the budgets and liabilities are associated with them, as it cannot risk rushing to take over something without a proper assessment that could turn out to be a financial burden for the municipality
Last week, the city’s governance and human resource committee revealed the intention to sign a memorandum between eThekwini and the DoT to facilitate a co-operative partnership.
It said eThekwini and the DoT should co-ordinate to ensure there is proper management of the road infrastructure within the city’s area.
“International Governance Relations’ head advised the committee that the proposed memorandum of understanding was an attempt to find a mechanism to ensure that the road network for the municipality as well as the Department of Transport is improved.”
It said this would also synergise the maintenance and cleanliness of provincial roads that run through the city.
The report said: “Authority (has) been granted to enter into a partnership with the KwaZulu-Natal Department of transport”. It said this would help with progress tracking, conflict management and dispute resolution.
THE Mercury