HUMANSDORP – Concerned residents have taken matters into their own hands to address the deteriorating condition of the R330, following months of worsening road damage that left the route increasingly hazardous for motorists.
According to a resident involved with the repair, who asked to remain anonymous, by March this year, the road had degraded significantly, with numerous large potholes making travel extremely dangerous.
He said that reports of punctures, damaged rims and serious accidents, particularly in the dip between Humansdorp and St Francis, have become increasingly common.
The resident further said that in response to the growing safety risk, the Kouga Local Municipality approached the Eastern Cape Department of Transport with an emergency request for assistance.
However, after receiving no response for two weeks, he said that the municipality intervened and carried out repairs in the most dangerous section of the road despite it being a provincial route.
In a Facebook post on 30 March, Kouga Executive Mayor Hattingh Bornman confirmed that despite not receiving permission from provincial roads, the municipality began fixing the worst and most dangerous section of the R330.
The anonymous resident said that at the same time, local resident Trevor Wright began placing orange flags along the R330 to warn motorists of potholes.
“This initiative soon grew into a broader community-driven effort,” he said.
The resident further said that a group of residents mobilised support through local WhatsApp and Facebook groups, calling for donations to fund pothole repairs.
He said that a contractor, referred by Scribante, was subsequently appointed, and repair work began on 31 March.
The resident said that the municipality also assisted by deploying traffic police to ensure safety during operations.
“By March this year, the multitude of potholes and their size made travelling the road extremely dangerous. We decided we had to do something,” he said.
The resident said that the initial progress was slowed by technical challenges, with more than 40 potholes needing to be redone after it was found that large potholes required hot asphalt rather than cold mix.
He said that, thankfully, the contractor corrected the work at their own cost, and following this adjustment, repairs progressed steadily.
“As of 24 April, there were no significant potholes from Cape St Francis through the dip approaching Humansdorp, with final work underway along the R330 near the dairy farms,” the resident said.
He said that the community initiative has received strong support, raising more than R220,000 from local businesses and private individuals. The resident further said that they hope to address smaller potholes if additional funding becomes available.
“Hopefully our repairs will allow for a safe transit of the road until the R330 reconstruction project commences in five to six months’ time,” he said.
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