Residents of Stoffel Park informal settlement in Mamelodi say they are fed up with the poor condition of their roads.

They don’t understand why the City of Tshwane is able to provide them with basic services, such as electricity and toilets, but is unable to do even superficial maintenance on their roads.

The settlement’s unnamed roads are rutted, potholed, eroded and bumpy, with rocks on them.

Residents complain their vehicles get damaged by the condition of the roads and at night, when they have to slow to a crawl, they are vulnerable to hijackings.

“Waiting for other cars to pass delays me a lot and I can’t do my job properly,” says taxi driver Jack Mahlangu. “I have to spend money to patch up one or two tyres every week. My passengers sometimes complain about being late for work. The city must fix this road and our streets.”

A resident, Mpendulo Motha, said: “Filling these holes with sand and rocks will take the City only a few days… Ambulances and police vans take a long time to arrive when they respond to emergencies.”

City spokesperson Lindela Mashigo said only when Stoffel Park was approved as a township could water, sewer, storm water and road infrastructure be installed.

Stoffel Park was formed in 2007 after residents occupied land earmarked for a Mahube Valley development.

The city started the formalisation process for Stoffel Park in 2013, allocating stands for 2 350 residents and providing electricity and rudimentary sanitation.

The application for township establishment is currently circulating for comments, said Mashigo. The process should be completed by next April.

The city did not respond to questions about what it had done regarding formalisation for the 10 years between 2013 and 2023, nor did it offer an explanation as to why this should stop it doing basic maintenance.