Cape Town - Lansdowne residents, up in arms over the poor upkeep of their neighbourhood say it has transformed their streets into a dumping ground and a race track for taxis.
Residents have complained of issues ranging from a build up of solid waste in the streets, taxis speeding through the neighbourhood and the lack of speed bumps in frequently used roads.
Lansdowne resident Faiq Omar said one of the major issues was the traffic, wherein taxis drove recklessly through the residential area.
“We have another huge issue where it seems that no matter what, the area is still not cleaned regularly enough. We need to ensure that a team is able to come in and clean up on a regular basis, especially because of the garbage dumping in the area,” said Omar.
Lansdowne resident Riyaadh Kearn said there hasn’t been appropriate lighting in the parks and sometimes no lighting all, as well as no safety precautions despite the unscrupulous acts that occur in those dim and unlit parks.
“Why must residents first complain before something is done. I would like our councillor to actually drive around Lansdowne and see the state we are living in with the terrible roads, garbage lying all over and our trees don't even get cut anymore. Those that we trusted and voted into power need to do their jobs,” said Kearn.
Lansdowne councillor Mark Kleinschmidt said there was a system in place to ensure all voices were heard where residents needed to submit their complaints and requests to the City Service Requests portal, and from there all issues would be addressed.
Kleinschmidt said illegal dumping was a city-wide issue, especially with the dirt collection delays.
“There are approximately 35 000 residents in the area, it is a huge stretch which is why we rely heavily on residents to report issues of illegal dumping.
“I continue to implore residents to file the garbage dumpings on the system and encourage all residents to work with my office, because we can achieve more together than individually,” said Kleinschmidt.