Concerns have been raised about the safety of the President Steyn Bridge in Pretoria North following a viral video showing what appears to be cuts at the bottom of its concrete pillars.
The spokesperson for the Save South Africa Civic Movement, Tebogo Mashilompane, expressed worries about the bridge's integrity, citing ongoing vandalism and theft of plates from the pillars.
“We saw that people have been trying to vandalise the place. If indeed vandalism continues it means the bridge will fall. The councillor confirmed that vandalism has indeed occurred,” he said.
According to him, the current condition of the bridge shows that vandalism took place recently.
“It was not like this before. That bridge has stood for years,” he said.
He called on the City of Tshwane to fix the place and enlist the services of proper engineers “who need to say what is likely to happen if the bridge is left like that. That bridge is very dangerous”.
Mayor Nasiphi Moya has assured residents that the cuts are part of the bridge's original German-inspired design, built in the 1950s.
To address the concerns, she said, the City will repair the damaged pillars, increase metro police presence, and conduct a thorough assessment to ensure the bridge's safety.
Moya visited the bridge yesterday in the company of engineers, Deputy Mayor Eugene Modise and Roads and Transport MMC Tlangi Mogale.
She said: “We understand the concerns raised, and acknowledge the vandalism on the bridge’s structure. We will be appointing an external contractor to assess the bridge.”
She said the cuts at the bottom of the bridge are the same cuts at the top and it is part of the design.
What was concerning, she said, was that there are plates that were stolen by criminals from the pillars.
“Obviously there are criminals who are taking them out and in the process, they are damaging the structure of the bridge. In the two columns, they have taken those plates and in the middle column they have not been able to get to them,” she said.
Moya said an inspection was conducted in February 2024 as part of the City’s regular maintenance of the bridge.
She, however, said it is important for the City to appoint an external engineer to do an assessment again “so that we can all be comforted that the bridge is in fact intact”.
Ward 2 councillor Quentin Meyer quashed rumours that the bridge was unsafe because of the cuts.
“This is unnecessary rumour. Yes, there is vandalism and you can even see it in the pictures but the cuts are not part of it,” he said.