The City of Johannesburg is actively recruiting pointsmen to man intersections with out-of-service traffic lights in an effort to reduce travel times on its roads.
The job pays R110.88 an hour and is secured by a short-term contract lasting no longer than 12 months.
Applicants are required to have a minimum education level of grade 10 and no criminal record to their name.
Their duties will include:
- Directing traffic and ensuring smooth vehicular movement at busy intersections.
- Assisting school children and ensuring their safety when crossing roads near schools.
- Engaging in community-related activities to improve public safety and promote the principles of Batho Pele (People First).
The initiative also seeks to reduce the number vagrants and homeless people who take it upon themselves to direct traffic at busy intersections when traffic lights are out of order.
These untrained individuals are not versed in the practice of safely directing cars at some of the busiest intersections in the world, which can lead to higher chances of vehicle accidents and, consequently, even more congestion.
Drivers also have little to no recourse against them if something goes wrong as a result of their inexperience.
Gauteng waging war
The Gauteng province is battling criminal elements who are hellbent on stealing and vandalising government infrastructure.
Within the City of Johannesburg alone, authorities have identified roughly 400 non-functional signals most of which are out of order due to theft, vandalism, and car accidents.
In his annual State of the Province Address, Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi revealed that the province is finally taking action against these nefarious individuals.
It will soon release a so-called “intelligent system” that can detect if somebody is tampering with road infrastructure and unleash the full might of the law upon them.
“We will unleash another intelligent system that will be tamper proof, that will immediately alert us if somebody is tampering with our traffic lights,” said Lesufi without going into further detail.
A possible solution could be something similar to Cape Town’s submersible chambers, which were installed at key intersections where theft and vandalism were frequent problems.
These chambers take the core components of the traffic signal into a large concrete base, which is recessed below the ground.
They also feature an uninterrupted power supply meaning there are no exposed cables attracting thieves, with another benefit being that they are independent of Eskom and unaffected by load-shedding.
These chambers were designed to be completely tamper-proof and are fitted with vibration-sensitive alarms that detect when someone may be trying to dig around the site and pick at the concrete.
If the alarm senses something an alert is sent out to law enforcement, who are quickly dispatched to the scene.
The City said that these systems have proved to be a massive success and that many of the “nightmare” intersections are now running smoothly since their installation.
The City of Cape Town said that it is more than happy to share this innovation, and that it receives regular delegations from other metros like the City of Tshwane and Nelson Mandela Bay who have shown interest in adopting the strategy.
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