At the intersection of the R75 and Mati Road, thieves or vandals have cut down traffic lights and left them to be collected later. (Photo: Riaan Marais) 
/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Monosnap-Clockwatch.jpg "We will be counting down the days it takes for the Nelson Mandela Bay municipality to fix the traffic lights on the R75. To date, promises were made seven days ago. (Image: Chatgpt)")
Have you ever watched a Japanese game show?
They are very weird, often hilarious and completely unpredictable. And just when you think you’ve seen it all, a guy in a cow costume jumps out and gives you a fright. Well, driving along the R75 is a lot like that, except the frightening cow is real!
Over the past week, the arterial route between Gqeberha and Kariega has showcased all the issues the road has experienced in recent years, crammed into just a few days.
Inoperable traffic lights, protesters setting the road on fire, accidents and roadworks delaying traffic, cable theft, illegal electrical connections, roadkill and roaming livestock. And that was just Monday.
/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/R75-pics-5.jpg "Kwadwesi residents Mpumelelo Peter and Xolisile Tangana said the R75 was a safety hazard for pedestrians and motorists alike. Peter, provincial chair for transport workers’ union Satawu, said thousands of people commuted on the arterial route daily, and non-functioning traffic lights were an ongoing concern. (Photo: Riaan Marais)")
“These issues are not new, but it seems like no effort is being made to fix them any more. It’s bad for all commuters – motorists and pedestrians. No one is safe,” Mpumelelo Peter said.
Besides being a resident of nearby Kwadwesi who uses the road daily, Peter also happens to be the provincial chairperson for transport workers’ union Satawu.
“Taxis, motorists and pedestrians – everyone is in danger when using this road. Traffic lights are not working or are just missing. And no vehicles stop for pedestrians wanting to cross the road, even at foot crossings.”
/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/R75-pics-3.jpg "No fewer than six cars sped past as Zwide handyman Jonathan Willem waited at a pedestrian crossing on the R75. The traffic light at the crossing has been cut down. (Photo: Riaan Marais)")
/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/R75-pics-2.jpg "Handyman Jonathan Willem finally crosses the R75. (Photo: Riaan Marais)")
To illustrate his point, six cars sped past the pedestrian crossing where handyman Jonathan Willem patiently waited with his wheelbarrow to cross the road from Missionvale to Zwide.
“I live in Zwide, but I work on both sides of the road. The road is quiet now, and people still don’t stop. Crossing this road in peak traffic is near impossible, and you risk your life every time you run across.”
Willem said motorists do not respect the rules of the road. He often sees people speeding and driving recklessly.
“But then again, some pedestrians also don’t think. They know it is unsafe, but they take chances. And then parents allow their kids to walk here alone. That is just not right.”
Lights out, electricity theft and protests
On Monday, driving from Despatch towards Gqeberha, the first traffic lights as you pass Bayland are offline.
/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/R75-pics-6.jpg "An illegal connection runs from an R75 traffic light into the nearby Bayland informal settlement. This section of the arterial route has seen numerous service delivery protests in recent weeks as residents demand access to basic services, including electricity. (Photo: Riaan Marais)")
A quick inspection revealed a thick black cable running from the yellow traffic light towards the nearby informal settlement. Electricity meant to power the lights is being illegally siphoned off to residents in the nearby informal settlement.
A few metres away, smoking debris was still visible next to the road, and members of the Public Order Policing Unit (POPs) kept a close eye on a group who disrupted traffic and blocked the road earlier this morning.
Their ongoing protests revolved around the municipality’s inability to provide them with basic services, namely formal roads and electricity.
Not much further up the road, at the Ziyabuya Shopping Centre, where the R75 and Mkwenkwe Street intersect, traffic laws seem to have been suspended.
Where offline traffic lights normally mean an intersection is treated as a four-way stop, this intersection has regressed into a free-for-all. Driving will probably result in a collision, while stopping for traffic will earn you a lambasting from any motorist forced to stop behind you.
/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/R75-pics-4.jpg "At the intersection of the R75 and Chelsea Road, at the bottom of the so-called Chatty Dip, nothing but stubs remain where the traffic lights once were. Even before they were cut down, the lights had been inoperative for months. (Photo: Riaan Marais)")
As you descend into the valley, known to locals as the Chatty Dip (after the small river that runs there), the traffic lights at the intersection with Chelsea Road are little more than yellow stubs sticking out of the ground.
They have been expertly cut and stolen, and an open manhole nearby reveals that all the electrical cables have been removed.
A deep trench runs along the side of the road where copper thieves dug up electrical cables meant to power the traffic lights.
/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/R75-pics-7.jpg "One of many traffic lights along the R75 that have been inoperative for months. (Photo: Riaan Marais)")
At the same intersection, a herd of cattle stood on the side of the road before one unexpectedly sauntered into oncoming traffic.
At crucial locations along the road, traffic lights were erected years ago to assist pedestrians in crossing the road. However, none are operational.
Around lunchtime, one of these crossings, next to the Dora Nginza hospital complex, was manned by a traffic warden to help learners from nearby schools to cross the road on their way home from Zwide to Missionvale.
And just before the R75 changes from Uitenhage Road to Commercial Road and enters Gqeberha’s CBD, traffic lights at the intersection of Mati Road, towards New Brighton, have also been cut down. However, whoever cut them was interrupted or intended to return later to collect their harvest, as the lights still lay on the pavement next to the road.
How big is the problem?
The R75 is a crucial road in Nelson Mandela Bay, linking Kariega (formerly known as Uitenhage) and Gqeberha. It links industry to the harbour at the Port of Port Elizabeth. Thousands of trucks and cars travel on this road each day.
Read more: Is this Nelson Mandela Bay’s most dangerous road?
Since 2021, traffic lights at 10 intersections have been out of order. The municipality has erected stop signs and painted stop markings on the road surface, but these are, by and large, ignored by motorists. Four pedestrian crossing lights have been out of order for just as long. The streetlights between the Bayland informal settlement and Despatch do not work.
Read more: Communities threaten to close R75 as lack of traffic lights claims three lives
While the South African National Roads Agency (Sanral) is fixing the road surface and has, of late, erected new signs and fixed broken barriers, the traffic lights are the responsibility of the Nelson Mandela Bay municipality.
Two motions have been filed for the municipality to address the issue of broken traffic lights. One by DA councillor Gustav Rautenbach at the Safety and Security committee, and the other by DA councillor John Best at the city council. Best’s motion was sent to the office of acting city manager Ted Pillay by council speaker Eugene Johnson.
What does the municipality say?
Metro spokesperson Sithembiso Soyaya says the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality strongly condemns all acts of vandalism targeting critical infrastructure such as water systems and traffic lights.
“The municipality has an active anti-vandalism strategy that includes community awareness campaigns, hotspot monitoring and partnerships with law enforcement.
“However, in the case of traffic lights, traditional anti-vandalism methods such as cages, barriers or heavy enclosures are not sustainable. They obstruct maintenance, can create road safety risks, and in most cases, only delay rather than prevent criminal activity. This is why the municipality is exploring new long-term technology-based solutions, including tamper alerts, solar-powered units and smart monitoring systems.
Read more: NMB metro, businesses fix traffic light after two years of chaos
“With regard to the R75 traffic lights, they are part of the current citywide programme to repair and restore signalised intersections. While immediate restoration is being prioritised, longer-term options to reduce vandalism will be pursued through technology rather than outdated physical deterrents,” he said.
KwaNobuhle community
Tukela Zamani from Mayibuye, a civic movement based in KwaNobuhle, said that at the core of the R75 problem was the municipality pointing a finger at Sanral and Sanral pointing it back at the municipality, while the road continued to claim innocent lives.
“The two entities have a shared responsibility towards the residents of Nelson Mandela Bay to collaborate on making the R75 safer. Anti-vandalism traffic lights need to be put up at all its intersections. The stricter enforcement of the speed limit that we have seen is a good start. More needs to be done. Pedestrian bridges need to be built at all the prominent crossings,” he said.
What’s next?
Keep coming back to Baywatch. The clock is running on what Soyaya meant when he said “immediate restoration is being prioritised”. This commitment was made last Monday. The lights are still out of order. So we start the clock at 7am today, 1 September. DM