Kariega Residents Decry Impact Of Matanzima Road Bridge Collapse

Several months after the collapse of the Matanzima Road bridge, the town is still in chaos with early morning traffic disrupting taxi routes, costing the taxi industry thousands as the alternative route is a gravel road which deteriorates the state of the vehicles.

Uitenhage District Taxi Association Spokesperson, Lubabalo Vesele, says their daily trips have been reduced, affecting their daily income,

"The impact of the bridge in our business is huge. We no longer have peak hour now in which we had five trips between 5am and 10am. The maximum is now two trips. Also, the road we now use is gravel, which affects the conditions of the taxis. We now have to constantly change tyres. The gravel road is bad," says Vesele.

Residents have voiced their frustrations about the delay of building a new bridge.

"This is not right. You see, now I have to walk to town because of this strike. The municipality must just fix the bridge. It is long overdue," says one of the angry residents.