The pedestrian crossing opposite Portland Primary School is a tragedy waiting to happen, say neighbourhood watch members.
Richard Small, a retired Portland resident, assists the scholar patrol at the crossing most days.
He told TygerBurger that in the mornings, during peak traffic, several motorists speed through the crossing, whether the traffic lights are red or not, whether the scholar patrol booms are up or down or whether there are pedestrians on the crossing or not.
Photographic evidence
He showed TygerBurger several photographs that he took of motorists and taxis driving over the crossing while the lights were red or the booms up or both.
On the morning that TygerBurger visited the school, there was no scholar patrol active yet, but several learners were already making their way to school.
Several taxis sped over the crossing after the traffic lights had turned amber or red and one nearly knocked Small over as he shepherded learners over the road — even though the lights were red.
Small said that on one occasion a taxi driver wove between the raised booms rather than wait for the learners to finish crossing.
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“There are some taxi drivers that respect the rules but about 60% of them don’t stop,” he said.
Small has escalated his concerns to the City and traffic directorate via numerous emails and this has resulted in law enforcement vans patrolling at the crossing intermittently.
On those occasions Small said the neighbourhood watch had seen a significant decline in motorists ignoring the crossing signals and most slowed down well before the crossing.
However, the vans are not able to stay at the site long enough and Small hopes that a more permanent solution can be found, such as a speed hump.
“Our cry is just to get law enforcement or traffic officers here every day, between seven and eight, that’s all we ask of them,” he said. “Just in the mornings.”
City responds
Rob Quintas, the City’s Mayco member for urban mobility, thanked Small for bringing the matter to the City’s attention.
“Small is welcome to submit a request for a speed hump or raised pedestrian crossing outside Portland Primary School by contacting the City’s Transport Information Centre at 0800 65 64 63 or emailing Transport.Info@capetown.gov.za,” he added.
“The request will then be logged and considered by the City’s transport planning and network management department within the relevant provisions of the City’s Traffic Calming Policy. A tracking number will be provided. Due to the volume of requests, the turnaround time for the investigation and response can be between 90 and 120 days.”
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Kevin Jacobs, the spokesperson for the City’s traffic services, said Small’s request for a vehicle to be stationed at the crossing was not feasible.
“The City’s enforcement agencies are unable to remain static at any one particular point for a prolonged period of time, due to the many demands on our services. However, City traffic services will engage with the school and/or scholar patrol to see how we can assist, while officers will continue enforcement on an ad hoc basis.”
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