JMPD moves to ease traffic woes during load-shedding
The metro police in Johannesburg will deploy more officers in an attempt to ease traffic congestion during load-shedding, the city announced on Monday.
Spokesperson for the Department of Public Safety, Luyanda Longwe, says more patrol unit will also be on the roads to protect motorists during the rolling blackouts.
"Eskom’s load-shedding have put unnecessary pressure on our already stretched metro policing capacity. We had deployed a total of 153 metro police officers and traffic points men across the city to direct traffic, and this deployment is set to increase as we receive more complaints in the coming days.
"There'll be a bulk of officers at major intersections as well as smaller intersections where we don't expect congestion, but due to load-shedding, we will be there. We'll be there during the day and not just peak hours."
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Longwe says the congestion could lead to an increase in smash-and-grab incidents.
"So that creates opportunistic crimes everywhere that is why regionally we have intensified patrols."
Residents have also been urged to take care when using candles during the power cuts.
"We are also aware that this load-shedding may encourage more people to use candles and other fire-related devices to produce light for them. We strongly encourage them to please be careful to make sure that they use proper candle holders, put them in stable position to ensure that they do not find themselves in emergency situations."