The City of Johannesburg metropolitan municipality together with the Johan-nesburg Roads Agency (JRA) launched the Elias Motsoaledi Housing Project and various road infrastructure projects in Soweto, Johannesburg, on June 10 as part of the city’s mission to build better local communities.

Led by City of Johannesburg executive mayor Parks Tau, the City of Johannesburg metropolitan municipality visited the Elias Motsoaledi com-munity to officially launch the area’s housing project, where the first phase of 200 houses was completed.

“We are delighted to have handed over the first phase of houses to people in the community. This marks the beginning of plenty more houses to come, with the aim being to provide proper houses to the people in this community and then demolish the informal settlements that they are currently living in.”

He highlighted to the community that the next phases of house-building over the coming financial year would move at a much faster pace as the municipality has decided to employ more contractors who will build houses simultaneously. This will ensure that people in the community do not wait for too long to receive their houses.

The mayor also urged the community to be patient during the building of these houses and assured the community that everyone who lives in the community will receive houses.

Tau announced that, while the housing project continues, the municipality has also contracted a contractor to start with the associated road infrastructure project in the community.

Meanwhile, the mayor also launched a storm-water drainage improvement project, a project upgrading gravel road surface standards and the Naledi Bridge project in various parts of Soweto on the same day.

The JRA said that the stormwater drains in Dobsonville Extension 3 will be upgraded at a cost of R6.2-million as part of its 2013/14 capital expenditure programme. The project’s objective is to improve stormwater drainage and decrease flooding in the area. The project also includes the conversion of the open drain system to a closed system to prevent community members from being swept away during flooding.

The JRA notes that installing new pipes where none exist and increasing the capacity of the existing systems will be the work done during the project. The project started in February and is expected to be completed by the end of July.

Tau indicated that the gravel road upgrade project is being implemented following the completion of a road tarring project in Soweto. The townships that are prioritised are Diepsloot, Bramfischerville, Doornkop and Orange Farm. In the 2013/14 financial year, Thulani, Tshepisong and Lawley townships were added as part of the townships to have gravel road upgrades. The total budget for these projects is R161-million. Estimated jobs to be created in the 2013/14 year are 280 and on completion of the projects, the standard of living and mobility in the areas will be greatly improved.

Finally, the construction of the new Naledi Bridge is aimed at bridging the historical apartheid separation of two interlinked com-munities in Soweto. Therefore, creating a safe crossing over the railway line for both pedestrians and vehicles in Ward 20 in Naledi and Ward 14 in Protea North. The R50-million project started on June 10 and will be completed in September 2015.

“The wellbeing of our communities is a priority for the JRA and the main objective for these projects is to improve the safely of all road users, while also alleviating poverty and unemployment through job creation and skills development,” highlighted JRA MD Skhumbuzo Macozoma.