Pothole fight taken to court

2010-03-10 19:13

Pietermaritzburg - The Cathedral Peak Hotel in the Drakensberg on Wednesday applied to the KwaZulu-Natal High Court to order the KZN transport department to repair roads and signs.

The hotel sold 15 000 bed nights and was visited by 15 000 vehicles a year but was served by execrable roads.

A trustee of the hotel, William van der Riet, said the potholes and other worn parts were often dangerous and caused great damage to vehicles while the road signs were either missing, confusing or illegible.

Advocate Allistair McIntosh, who himself won a large damages claim from the roads department because of a life-changing accident caused by a large pothole, was appearing for the hotel.

He said the pothole which caused him to crash while cycling could have been repaired for R74.

He took issue with a department claim that it had repaired some potholes using gravel and soil. The department's own manual for repair specifies that the potholes must be cleaned, sealed with a compound, filled with tar and compacted.

In addition to the hotel visitors and staff, many people lived in the area. Taxi associations, Emmaus hospital patients and staff, day trippers, farmers, owners of Drakensberg homes, mountaineers and other visitors also used the roads.

The transport department was opposing the action, saying that the department only received 40% of the funds needed for maintenance.

Judge Chris Nicholson adjourned the case to September for oral evidence.

- SAPA